Devotions @ 3 on 9-15-18

3 a.m. prayer:

Most gracious heavenly Father,

Continuing our Bible study from the book of Proverbs: Contrasting Righteous and Wicked Lives. WORRY KILLS! “The fear of the Lord prolongs life, but the years of the wicked will be shortened. The hope of the righteous is gladness, but the expectation of the wicked perishes. The way of the Lord is a stronghold to the upright, but ruin to the workers of iniquity” (Proverbs 10:27-29). (A devout life leads to longevity. Wicked men are cut off prematurely.) The prospect of the righteous is joy; the things looked forward to by the righteous will be realized with gladness. Not so with the wicked – their hopes will be thoroughly disappointed – the expectation of the wicked perishes! The Lord proves to be a tower of strength for the upright, but is destruction to evildoers. Worry kills, but confidence in God is like healing medicine. Whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord. We have all the instructions to live a long life. While we are alive, Jesus will be with us; when we die, we will be with Jesus.  *****

//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 Devotions @ 3 group plan to meet and have lunch; details posted on the groups Facebook page. For this upcoming gathering, we pray.
And so we begin, “Just for Today”: For anyone who may be doubtful of their salvation, we pray.
*>NEW Prayer Requests: *> Over the last few days many lives have been lost due to an enormous hurricane which has hit several states along the Eastern shoreline. Much damage has been done which will continue over the next several days. It is not yet known how many homes and businesses have been destroyed, thousands are without power, many have evacuated and are in shelters, rescue attempts are underway for many victims. As the storm’s damaging high force winds, tornados, rain and flooding are worsening, we pray. **>A mother and father are full of anticipation and concern as they head back to the hospital this morning. Their dear daughter, pregnant with their first grandson, was experiencing elevated blood pressure when she was at the doctor’s office yesterday. She was sent to the hospital where her labor was induced in the afternoon. This morning, they are still awaiting the arrival,; and for a safe delivery, we pray. **A dear daughter is by the bedside of her 95 year old father who was rushed to the hospital yesterday, and is not doing well, it appears his body is shutting down, and we pray.
**<PREVIOUS Prayer Requests: **<Battling Cancer: **< Continuing to remember a dear man with progressive kidney cancer; he is very fatigued, and we pray. **<We continue to lift up a dear lady who has stage 4 pancreatic cancer, and we pray. **<Chronic Pain: <** Some have overall, unexplained pain, others have pain in specific areas of their bodies, and we pray. **<Divorce:< **A dear grandmother continues to pray for her grandchildren who are being exposed to an immoral living arrangement, and we pray.**<Epilepsy: **< A sister worries about her 64 year old brother with epilepsy who is drinking excessively, and we pray. **<Financial +:**< A wife is worried about her husband’s mental state and how his out of control spending is affecting their overall finances, and we pray. **<Continuing to remember the elderly couple whose life-savings account is in jeopardy, and due to dementia they are continuing to make some bad financial choices; it’s difficult to get through to them, and we pray.**<Health Problems: **Update:<A dear man has been undergoing tests for his debilitating headaches; also has Type 1 diabetes and vascular dementia. Yesterday, he had an MRI of the brain; awaiting results, and we pray. **<A 20 year old man who has had deep muscular, skeletal problems will begin physical therapy treatment on the 19th. The cost is all out-of-pocket and adds much financial strain to the family, and we pray. **<Heart Related +:** <A sister prays for her brother who has an inoperable tumor near his aorta which doctors believe is benign, and we pray. **< A dear lady endures much verbal abuse from her fatally ill husband who has a bad heart, 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 can’t get out much 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, and we pray.**<Infections/Injections/Injuries:**Update:<One among us continues to have much back pain, difficulty walking, and suffers from high blood pressure. Being that she is not a candidate for risky surgery at this time she is on medications which offer little or no relief. On the 18th she will begin laser treatments twice a week; and on the 25th is scheduled for a needle injection in her back. Much of her treatment is not covered by insurance which puts a financial strain on this elderly lady, and we pray. **Update:<One among us continues to suffer from tendonitis in her left heel, happy to report she is being helped by the brace she got yesterday, and for continued healing, we pray.**<Job Market: **<One in our group is working with a job recruiter to, hopefully, gain suitable employment; she recently heard of a job close to home and is waiting to hear, 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. Awaiting kitchen countertops which are being manufactured now and, hopefully, will soon receive those. They are working hard at building their online business which has picked up some, and for continued success, we pray.**<Marital Crisis:**There are at least 3 couples who are having difficulty in their marriages, and we pray.**<Mental Health: **>An aunt prays for her 23 year old nephew who continues to be in treatment at a mental hospital, and has been undergoing some serious testing and evaluation. The parents are having a difficult time watching their son adjust to the 30-day treatment program, and we pray. **<Continuing to remember the 20-year-old young lady 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 continue to suffer with symptoms from colds, flu, and/or allergies, and we pray.
**<Surgeries/Prior: **<A dear lady had her 2nd cataract surgery on Thursday, and for continued healing, we pray. **>An aunt continues to pray for her niece who is home now and doing well after a successful back surgery on Wednesday; and for continued healing, we pray.**<Update: Continuing to remember a dear man who had successful knee surgery on Tuesday, he is doing great, is so pleased with the outcome, and we rejoice, and for continued healing, we pray. **<Continuing to remember the lady who had a hysterectomy a little over a week ago, and for continued healing, we pray. **Update: <Continuing to remember another dear man who had knee replacement surgery a little over a week ago; he seems to be doing much better, so we rejoice, and for continued healing, we pray.
**<Surgeries/Upcoming: **<A dear wife prays for her husband who has many health issues, and is still waiting for a surgery date in the removal of a cancerous growth from his nose. He had an MRI yesterday and as results unfold, we pray. **<A dear sister prays for her brother who 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.
For these and the many unspoken requests we pray all in Jesus name. Lord bless our homes. AMEN