On Wings Of Eagles

free counters

Tuesday, September 7, 2010

God's Chair



A man's daughter had asked the local pastor to come and pray with her father. When the pastor arrived, he found the man lying in bed his head propped up on two pillows and an empty chair beside his bed. The pastor assumed that the old fellow had been informed of his visit.


"I guess you were expecting me," he said.


"No, who are you?"


"I'm the new associate at your local church," the pastor replied. "When I saw the empty chair, I figured you knew I was going to
show up."


"Oh yeah, the chair," said the bedridden man. "Would you mind closing the door?"


Puzzled, the pastor shut the door. "I've never told anyone this, not even my daughter," said the man. "But all of my life I have never known how to pray. At church I used to hear the pastor talk about prayer, but it always went right over my head. I abandoned any attempt at prayer," the old man continued, "until one day about four years ago my best friend said to me, 'Joe, prayer is just a simple matter of having a conversation with Jesus. Here's what I suggest: Sit down on a chair; place an empty chair in front of you, and in faith see Jesus on the chair. It's not spooky because he promised, 'I'll be with you always.' Then just speak to him and listen in the same way you're doing with me right now.' So, I tried
it and I've liked it so much that I do it a couple of hours every day. I'm careful, though. If my daughter saw me talking to an empty chair, she'd either have a nervous breakdown or send me to off to the funny farm."


The pastor was deeply moved by the story and encouraged the old guy to continue on the journey. Then he prayed with him, and returned to the church. Two nights later the daughter called to tell the pastor that her daddy had died that afternoon.


"Did he seem to die in peace?" he asked.


"Yes, when I left the house around two o'clock, he called me over to his bedside, told me one of his corny jokes, and kissed me on the cheek. When I got back from the store an hour later, I found him dead. But there was something strange, in fact, beyond strange—really weird. Apparently, just before Daddy died, he leaned over and rested his head on a chair beside the bed."
--author unknown



What a great illustration of prayer. Just talking to God. Just like we talk to a friend, after all He is our best friend. Take the time today to talk to God.



“This, then, is how you should pray:” 'Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.


- Matthew 6:9-13 (New International Version)



Dear Lord we thank you for the privilege and honor we have to come before you and pray. Thank You for being there and listening to us. In Jesus’ Name, Amen

No comments:

Post a Comment