Prisoners of Hope

God has been sending this verse my way the past week........first in Katie Davis Majors book, "Daring To Hope", then Chris Gore's book, "Walking in Supernatural Healing Power", and then through devotionals. I have a tendency to read more than one book at a time, and so picking up both these books in one day and finding myself "coincidentally" reading chapters with the same title ~ Prisoners of Hope~ ?  Hello God!

Prisoners of hope. It is where we need to position ourselves as stated in 2 Chronicles.  "Position yourself, stand firm, and let God fight for you".  Yeah. This verse in Zechariah is a promise I am holding tight to.

Last night we received a phone call from a long time friend, Vic.  We went to The Lutheran Bible Institute together.  His wife  Arlene and I were roommates our first year along with two others......four of us sharing a big dorm room, and she was my personal attendant at our wedding.  We have a history.  They called to tell us that another man we went to college with was having brain surgery today after fighting a spreading malignant melanoma for 2 years.  They had found 2 tumors in his brain.  The last time we saw this man and his wife was at Luther Seminary in 1974, where he was taking classes.  We went to visit them there and came away from the weekend with the desire to get an "early out" from the Air Force and head to the Sem.  God had other plans, though, and we went to the Philippines for 2 years.  A move by God and the Air Force that completely changed and blessed our lives.

After a brief visit with Vic on the phone, we hung up, looked at each other, and prayed.  There is so much sickness in our broken world.  At our age, you hear more and more about others who are in need of prayers, and we needed to position ourselves in prayer.

Another man, a retired pastor and good friend, sent us a group email a few days ago, letting us know that his wife did well with the radiation she has needed to battle an aggressive cancer that returned after one year.  She will have surgery early in November to remove the tumor in her belly, and may not need the scheduled chemo after.  He asked for continued prayers as they can see the results of those prayers.

Prisoners of hope.  That is where we position ourselves as followers of Jesus.  That is where we stand firm ~ in the promises of God's Word.  There are times we fight hard, there are times we rest, and there times we let God fight for us.   But in the midst of any difficulty, we remember all God has done for us.  We remember all He promises, and we declare we are prisoners of hope.  Held captive by Love manifest.  Held captive by Jesus and the assurance that He wants to restore us double portions. Double for our trouble.....and there is this troubled world we live in.

As I have stated often, we believe fully that God wants us well.  That Jesus died for our salvation....wholeness from sin and sickness that He paid the price for over 2,000 years ago.  It is finished.  With Holy Spirit in us we have the authority and power to pray, and it is from that position that we do pray.  Prayer is a powerful weapon of God.  It moves mountains. 

Our friends have mountains in their lives right now.  Because we live in a broken world, the enemy uses sickness and disease to kill, steal, and destroy.  God uses prayer, the medical and natural world, and His Son to heal, build up, and restore.  We say, "Come Lord Jesus."  Because God loves us and never comes to kill, steal, or destroy,  we remain prisoners of hope.  And in that hope, THE HOPE, we embrace His promises and we pray.