“Eyes Wide Open” Prayer
NFW Daily News reports,
MARY ESTHER — A 28-year-old woman was taken to the hospital for evaluation after driving into a Mary Esther house Thursday morning.
The woman told Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office deputies she was praying at the time and had her eyes closed, according to the OCSO.
The Fort Walton Beach woman was traveling eastbound on Marcia Drive when she failed to stop at a stop sign, went through an intersection and into the yard of a home on Miramar Drive.
Don’t miss the important road signs of life by praying with your eyes shut. To pray with your eyes wide open, you must look beyond your own immediate concerns and pay attention to the many needs around you.
Pray with your eyes wide open for the lost souls who live without hope.
Pray with your eyes wide open for those who are lonely and hurting.
Pray with your eyes wide open for those who have suffered injustice, for the desperate, for the dying.
"And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord's people" (Ephesians 6:8).
“Never stop praying” (1 Thessalonians 5:17, NLT).
Do You See What You See?
One Fall day in October of 2013, Banksy the artist set up a display in New York's Central Park. A sign indicated that each piece, painted with black paint on white canvas, was available for $60 each. He sat beside his work for most of the day as occasionally, a busy passerby stopped to look at his work.
After several hours, he managed to sell a couple of pieces to a lady who talked him into selling two small prints at half price. He closed up shop by 6 pm having sold $420 worth of paintings. Not bad by most standards. But what no one seemed to realize was who this artist was and the great value of his work.
In recent years investors have paid close to 2 million dollars to own a Banksy original. Why did he set up shop in Central Park that day? He did not bother to explain, but perhaps only to give us pause to consider our value system.
It takes special insight to understand the true value of a work of art. Similarly, it takes divine insight to understand the true worth and value of every human being.
Ephesians 2:10 says, "But we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God has before prepared that we should walk in them."
The Greek word for workmanship is poiema, which simply means "a thing made." A "thing made" may not seem so valuable until you consider who made us. It's whose workmanship we are that makes each of us a masterpiece, worth far more than the world will ever know. Open your spiritual eyes and see as God sees!
"But even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not therefore: ye are of more value than many sparrows" (Luke 12:7).
Time and Money Lost in Traffic
As this study illustrates, sitting in traffic can carry a huge price tag! And not just financially but spiritually.
Don't allow the extra time spent in your car to cost you any more than it needs to. Spend that time in prayer, or Scripture memory, or listening to an uplifting message or music on a Christian radio station. Spend it catching up on the news or sports, so that you don't rob your family of your presence later in the evening as you drone in front of the television or computer. If necessary, just spend it in silence, so that you can feel refreshed and ready to face the demands of home life.
Just because time spent in traffic costs you in fuel doesn't mean it has to be time wasted. Allow even the traffic to pay you dividends.
"Redeem the time" (Ephesians 5:16).
Barnett Gushin