Prayer is Powerful and so is a Lack of Prayer

Prayer is an amazing thing. To be able to approach the Father with our praises, confessions, concerns and just thoughts in general (through Christ), is an awesome privilege. Unfortunately, all to often, I forget to make my prayers complete. I pray in thought or through journal, but forget to bring things to my LORD consistently when I haven't been reminded of them by life's prompting.

Prayer is a powerful thing, because He whom we pray to, is a powerful and mighty God. I think that, though not nearly as powerful, our neglect of prayer can also be powerful. If I do not pray for something consistently as I ought to, or I "say" a prayer without considering what I am praying, and Whom I am praying to, then it is almost as if I never asked God. Therefore, I cannot be surprised or angered when something goes "wrong".

Please don't misunderstand. I am not implying that by my NOT praying for something, that I am the cause of a bad out come. I do not presume to hold that kind of power. What I am saying, is that if I want a chance at a good out come, I must be more diligent in truly and humbly bringing things before my Awesome and Praise worthy God. He is mighty and capable of much, but if I never bother to ask it of Him, I cannot be upset when He doesn't assume my request and answer in my perceived favor. He always answers our prayers, though that answer may sometimes be no, but we must first pray to be answered.

I was reminded of this yesterday, when we took Lizzie to her yearly cardiology appointment. I never bothered to pray before going, or even to ask my sisters in my Bible Studies to be praying. I thought to, but immediately thought, "no need, it is just a check-up." But nothing is ever "just a..." anything. And God reminded me of that when the cardiologist informed us that Lizzie now has two things that will need to be monitored. Our check-ups the past couple of years have been to be sure that the fake valve they put in is still functioning enough to leave it. It is slightly weaker, but still not weak enough to be worried now. That one we knew, but now there is a second, new, concern. She has developed a new heart defect, known as Atrial Septal Defect (ASD). This is a tiny hole in her heart between the two TOP chambers (you might remember that Lizzie had a hole repaired when she was just a week old, but that was between the BOTTOM chambers).

So what does that mean. Essentially nothing now. Just that she will need something in her early teens or sooner to repair the defect and/or the weak valve. They will continue to monitor her yearly until there is a significant enough change in numbers (lung function, etc.) that they have to do something.

Please, join me in praying for Lizzie in the coming years. Pray that she would be healed and not need surgery or even a procedure. Pray that if she does need medical intervention, that God would give the doctors, and us discernment as to what steps should be taken. Pray that Lizzie (and her sisters) would know God's love through all this and that she would become a light in a dark world.

Pray. Pray with your hearts cry and not a brief fleeting thought set off into the nothingness of space. Pray as we ought to, not as I so often find myself doing.