Devotions @ 3 on 9-11-18

3 a.m. prayer:

Most gracious heavenly Father,

Continuing our study in Proverbs: Contrasting Righteous and Wicked Lives! “Doing wickedness is like sport to a fool, and so is wisdom to a man of understanding” (Proverbs 10:23).  (A fool delights in wicked schemes and amuses himself by getting into trouble or causing trouble for others; it’s his favorite pastime. A man of understanding gets his pleasure by conducting himself wisely; he delights in wisdom.) Fools enjoy doing wrong, but anyone with good sense enjoys acting with intelligence and showing discernment in wise thoughts and deeds. *****

//Standing Prayer: Always remembering our country, for restoration, our continued peace, and freedom; we ask that You grant wisdom and guidance to those who are in authority, and we pray; and for the protection of our men and women who are on the battlefield, we pray. Lord, heal our land, we pray. There are people in other parts of the world who need protection and relief as they are surrounded by war and poverty; also in need of rescue are Christians who are being persecuted, and we pray.

**REMINDER: **> September 19th @ 11:30, several in the group plan to meet and have lunch; details posted on “Devotions @ 3” Facebook page. For this upcoming gathering, we pray.

And so we begin, “Just for Today”: For anyone who may need to know someone cares (we care), and we pray.

*>NEW Prayer Requests: *> On this 9/11 day, seventeen years ago, thousands died during a terrorist attack on our country. There are many victims still suffering today from the aftermath of that terrible event, and we pray. *>A hurricane has intensified to a category 4 and is on a path heading toward the East coast. It is predicted to make landfall in the next few days between North and South Carolina, and we pray. *>A daughter is grieving the recent death of her beloved 92 year old mother, and we pray. *>A wife prays for her husband who is having knee surgery today, and we pray. *>An aunt prays for her adolescent nephew who has been admitted to the hospital for mental illness; he has been hearing voices and has become a threat to himself and others. His parents are devastated, and we pray.

**<PREVIOUS Prayer Requests:**< Battle after Battle: <**A dear lady who recently spoke out publicly regarding a sexual advance toward her is now is being ridiculed and receiving legal threats, and we pray.**<Battling Cancer: **<Awaiting Update: Continuing to remember a dear man who has progressive kidney cancer. His liver enzymes have been abnormal, possibly due to new medication; he saw the doctor yesterday and had more blood tests, and we pray. **<We continue to lift up a dear lady who has stage 4 pancreatic cancer along with blood clots, and we pray. **<A wife prays for her husband who has a rare form of progressive, appendix cancer. He has an infection in his lungs, and is awaiting an appointment for his lung to be drained, and we pray.**<Chronic Pain: <** A dear lady prays for her sister who has unexplained pain and is currently on a month long camping and fishing trip with her husband, and we pray. **<Divorce:< **A dear grandmother continues to pray for her grandchildren whose parents are divorced, and not attending church. The children are being exposed to an immoral living arrangement, and we pray.**<Epilepsy: **< A sister worries about her brother who is drinking excessively. He has severe epilepsy; hopefully, he will be able to begin traveling with a well-respected cousin who might be able to influence him, and we pray. **<Financial:**< Continuing to remember the elderly couple who is about to turn 90 years old and have recently discovered their life-savings account is in jeopardy, and we pray. **<Health Problems: **<A dear man has been undergoing tests for his debilitating headaches; along with ulcers on his foot, he also has Type 1 diabetes and vascular dementia, and we pray. **<A 20 year old man who has had deep muscular, skeletal problems will begin physical therapy treatment, and we pray. **<Heart Related +:** <A sister prays for her brother who has an inoperable tumor near his aorta which doctors believe is benign. As they seek a second opinion, we pray. **< A dear lady endures much verbal abuse from her fatally ill husband who has a bad heart; also she has the responsibility of a very demanding, 90+ year old, ailing father, and we pray. **<A dear lady has difficulty sleeping due to chronic nervousness and heart palpitations, and we pray. **<Homebound: **<One among us is disabled and homebound due to a previous stroke, and we pray. **Identity Crisis: **<A dear grandmother prays for her 16 year old granddaughter who is struggling with gender identity. The parents are heart broken as well as others in the family who love her, and we pray. **<Infections/Injections/Injuries: **<One among us has been in much back pain for a long time, has difficulty walking, and suffers from high blood pressure and not a candidate for risky surgery at this time. Instead, medications have been administered and the dear lady will be having injections in her back, and we pray. **<One among us suffers from tendonitis in her left heel, and we pray. **<Job Market: **<One in our group is working with a job recruiter to, hopefully, gain suitable employment, and we pray. **<Making Progress: **<The dear couple who stepped out on faith several months ago, to ‘begin again’ are continuing in remodeling their newly acquired older home; and are working hard developing a new online business venture, and for their continued success, we pray. **<Marital Crisis:**<Two couples are having marital difficulties, and we pray. **<Mental Health: **<Continuing to remember the 20-year-old who was treated for major depression, now seeing a therapist twice a week, and we pray. **<Respiratory: <**Several in our group have loved ones in their family who are suffering with symptoms from colds, flu, and/or allergies, and we pray.

**<Surgeries/Prior:**<Continuing to remember: the lady who had a hysterectomy on Tuesday, and the dear man who had knee replacement surgery a little over a week ago, and we pray.

**<Surgeries/Upcoming: **Awaiting Update:<A dear wife prays for her husband who has many health issues; is awaiting a surgery date for removal of a cancerous growth from his nose. and we pray. **<Awaiting Update:<A wife prays for her husband who is facing back surgery involving the sciatic nerve; asking wisdom for him and his doctors. He had an appointment yesterday for a consult with the neuro-surgeon, and we pray. **<A dear lady is scheduled for her 2nd cataract surgery on September 13th, and we pray. **<A dear sister prays for her brother who suffers vision loss from a torn retina; he is scheduled for cataract surgery in October, and we pray. **<Continuing to remember the elderly lady who is battling health problems, has blocked arteries, and an open wound on her heel. Surgery is scheduled on October 17th for a Bi-femoral artery bypass, and we pray. **< A dear lady suffers much pain due to bone on bone in her hip, also has severe curvature of the spine. Surgery for hip replacement is scheduled for November 28th, and we pray.

//Travel Mercies: **<>This is an ongoing prayer request for all who are on the highways and byways. Lord, we ask that You daily keep our travelers safe from harm, and we pray. **Update:<A dear woman had safe travels out of state and was able to fly her wheelchair-bound grandmother to another nursing home closer to family , and we rejoice.
For these and the many unspoken requests we pray all in Jesus name. Lord bless our homes. AMEN