A few years ago when our church began a building project for a new sanctuary, the congregation was invited to a special praise and worship evening in the partially constructed building. Before the drywall was installed, we were encouraged to move about the space and write the names of loved ones we were praying for on the masonry blocks.
With my borrowed Sharpie marker, I scratched out the name of two family members whom I love dearly, but who don’t know Jesus as their Lord and Savior. Each weekend as my husband and I attend services, I sit in a strategic spot that allows me full view of my “familial salvation monument.” Every week, I “remind” Jesus (lest He forgets) of these two lost souls; of my commitment to faith on their behalf and my commitment for continued prayer regardless of how opposite their behavior currently is. I love this physical reminder and knowing their names are part of the permanent structure of the church.
After years of praying for them, it would appear as though nothing has changed in this situation – other than the fact that we are all a few years older. With the advancement of time (which seems to have sped up exponentially since I entered my 50s), I feel more intense pressure than ever to pray for my loved ones. Time is short!
My intensity to pray for these two lost family members and others who don’t know Jesus is like the Phoenix desert heat smack dab in the middle of summer – which by the way, I don’t really mind. Mainly, because as I get older and one year closer to Jesus, the intense summer heat reminds me of all those lost souls who will spend their eternity in Hell if they don’t say “yes” to Jesus.
If we think Phoenix is hot in July and August, imagine if you will, what Hell will be like … every … single … day – and not for just a day, a month – or a whole summer — but for all eternity — forever.
The knowledge that there are those who will be separated from Jesus for all eternity burns my heart with a searing pain, much the way my steering wheel burns my hands when my car has been sitting in a parking lot without the benefit of a shade screen. So every time I step outside and I’m blasted with the hot wind of a cloudless, 119° July day – I think, “Lord, please save my loved ones who are separated from You!”
You can say Phoenix is a “dry heat;” I think of it as a “Why?” heat:
WHY won’t the lost come to Christ?
I feel my desperation for their souls. I feel the heat. Thank you, Jesus for the daily heated reminders.
If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It’s better to enter eternal life with only one hand than to go into the unquenchable fires of hell with two hands. Mark 9:43 (NLT)
Blessings in Christ,
Kathy K.
What a great prayer reminder!
Kathy, thanks for this intense & thought provoking devotional. You are right, we need to ask ourselves “Why won’t the lost come to have a relationship with Jesus”? Why is the devil having his way with their life? Asking God to reveal how to pray for those we love can pierce through the toughest spiritual walls & barriers. Thanks for sharing your precious heart!
THANK YOU for the insight on the summer heat we are all enduring–what a Holy Spirit breathed perspective.
I, too, am feeling a more intense need to pray for our loved ones who don’t know the Lord. I love the idea of using the heat as a reminder to pray for their salvation. Thank you, Kathy!
Thank you, Ladies for your many kind words!
You reminded me that we also wrote the name of our son in law on the northeast wall. He doesn’t know this. Three months ago, he gave his life to the Lord and got baptized in a backyard swimming pool. Praise God. Many prayers went toward this event. 7 years.