Prayers For Sarah

1Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up. 2He said: "In a certain town there was a judge who neither feared God nor cared about men. 3And there was a widow in that town who kept coming to him with the plea, 'Grant me justice against my adversary.'
4"For some time he refused. But finally he said to himself, 'Even though I don't fear God or care about men, 5yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will see that she gets justice, so that she won't eventually wear me out with her coming!' "
6And the Lord said, "Listen to what the unjust judge says. 7And will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off? 8I tell you, he will see that they get justice, and quickly. However, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?" Luke 18: 1-8 NIV

I think these verses are appropriate for today because there are so many that are heavy hearted in our community at the moment. There is a young lady from a neighboring county, Sarah Irvin Gardner, with cancer. Through the world wide web, her family has graciously shared their journey of faith and trials with us.

The story of this one girl has touched a community in such a special way because our common goal of seeing her healed has allowed people to cross denominational and even county lines in order to unite for this cause. On her birthday, we were able to witness more than one county sharing in her journey by wearing pink and posting "Hope For Sarah" on various Internet sites.

We have prayed so long. We have watched her give birth to her newborn baby and we have witnessed some of the emotions that are shared on her blog from those who love her so dearly.  A couple of days ago, her sister posted a difficult entry regarding the status of Sarah and their current position. At this point in time, they have only God to rely on. The skills of man are no longer an option. They simply have God and they are at peace with that. You can read her blog here.

Today, you can see "praying for Sarah" on many facebook pages, and I know that many think of her often all throughout their days. I know that I do. It would be easy at this time to think that God has made His ultimate decision. I can not say if He has or if He has not. I know that the lesson from this parable states, "And, will not God bring about justice for His chosen ones, who cry out to Him day and night? He will see that they get justice and quickly."

When we realize that we are powerless without Him, and when we come to the point that we know we have nothing but God, that is when He has the most opportunity to act. This is when we take our human skills out of His way and let God be God. I do not know God's plans for Sarah. I only know that He is mighty and capable of giving her the miracle that everyone greatly desires. I know that we shouldn't give up. I know that we should continue to cry out to Him until His decision is evident. Now is the time to have faith, now is the time to seek His face, and now is the time to be persistent.

Are you facing an impossible situation today? Don't walk away from the battle until the battle is over. Only God can decide when it's truly over. Keep at it. Don't give up. When the final moment of your battle has come, if God in His sovereignty chooses not to honor your request, then you may seek His comfort in accepting that. Until then, "Onward Christian Soldiers!"