Desperate for Jesus

[Joan]

Selah, It's late so I didn't read enough of the preceding posts to discover your son's current state, but I do want to quickly share my son's story to encourage you. The Lord can do anything! My son was a heavy user of alchohol and hard drugs for approximately ten years. There was nothing I could do for him (other than to occasionally feed him), but the Lord was faithful to help me pray. My son's condition was an ever-present, wordless anguish woven into the fiber of my everyday life, and I lived in constant awareness that at any moment I might be notified of his overdose, his murder, or perhaps something much worse. On rare occasion when I saw him, my son would ask about the Lord or about salvation. His mind would wander before I could give an answer, but I felt encouraged that eternal matters were at least sometimes on his mind. On several occasions over the years, I was suddenly interrupted in my activities by a keen sense of my son's being in immediate peril. I would fall to my knees in prayer for him. One time, the impression of his need for prayer was so sudden and so intense, it was as though someone had taken me by the shoulders to interrupt me with a sudden shake, saying, "PRAY FOR YOUR BOYS!!" (My nephew and two stepsons were on an outing with my son at the time.) I fell instantly to prayer, earnestly beseaching the Lord for their safety until, as unexpectedly as it began, the impression ended. I returned to my previous activities wondering, "Was that for real??" I later learned from my son that the four of them had been drinking and driving at high speed on gravelled mountain roads, and had slid off the road to hang precariously over a cliff-edge. They were held back from falling by a mere sapling! Obviously, the Lord had intervened. Over time, my son drifted further and further into this lifestyle, until he was living in a hotel with a construction crew on the other side of the country, spending his earnings on beer and crack cocaine, to which he was thoroughly addicted. This went on for a year or two until one day he went into his room, locked the door, and stayed there until he had sweated the drugs completely out of his system. Several days later, he came out clean. "How did you do it?" I later asked, and, "WHY?" "I don't know, Mom," he said. "All I knew was that God was involved, and that you were praying." It was a few more years before he completely gave up drinking and "light weight" drugs, but in the end he found a wife, got married, had children, and in the process, became a man. Now the former days are so far behind us that I've all but forgotten them. My son is a loving husband, an amazing dad and provider, and what is best, I see him becoming a man of God. "Behold, is there anything too hard for Me?" No Lord, Nothing is too hard for You. In Your unfailing love, in Your incomprehensible wisdom and power, do for Selah's son as You are doing for mine! - And for the sons of all the other Selah's, fallen prey to snares and lies. Bring them face to face with You, Father, face to face with Jesus, the ONE Truth that sets men free. Let others see and know there is a God in heaven who lives and who hears the cries of those who trust in Him! Thank You Lord, Amen.

[selah]

Selah, It's late so I didn't read enough of the preceding posts to discover your son's current state, but I do want to quickly share my son's story to encourage you. The Lord can do anything! My son was a heavy user of alchohol and hard drugs for approximately ten years. There was nothing I could do for him (other than to occasionally feed him), but the Lord was faithful to help me pray. My son's condition was an ever-present, wordless anguish woven into the fiber of my everyday life, and I lived in constant awareness that at any moment I might be notified of his overdose, his murder, or perhaps something much worse. On rare occasion when I saw him, my son would ask about the Lord or about salvation. His mind would wander before I could give an answer, but I felt encouraged that eternal matters were at least sometimes on his mind. On several occasions over the years, I was suddenly interrupted in my activities by a keen sense of my son's being in immediate peril. I would fall to my knees in prayer for him. One time, the impression of his need for prayer was so sudden and so intense, it was as though someone had taken me by the shoulders to interrupt me with a sudden shake, saying, "PRAY FOR YOUR BOYS!!" (My nephew and two stepsons were on an outing with my son at the time.) I fell instantly to prayer, earnestly beseaching the Lord for their safety until, as unexpectedly as it began, the impression ended. I returned to my previous activities wondering, "Was that for real??" I later learned from my son that the four of them had been drinking and driving at high speed on gravelled mountain roads, and had slid off the road to hang precariously over a cliff-edge. They were held back from falling by a mere sapling! Obviously, the Lord had intervened. Over time, my son drifted further and further into this lifestyle, until he was living in a hotel with a construction crew on the other side of the country, spending his earnings on beer and crack cocaine, to which he was thoroughly addicted. This went on for a year or two until one day he went into his room, locked the door, and stayed there until he had sweated the drugs completely out of his system. Several days later, he came out clean. "How did you do it?" I later asked, and, "WHY?" "I don't know, Mom," he said. "All I knew was that God was involved, and that you were praying." It was a few more years before he completely gave up drinking and "light weight" drugs, but in the end he found a wife, got married, had children, and in the process, became a man. Now the former days are so far behind us that I've all but forgotten them. My son is a loving husband, an amazing dad and provider, and what is best, I see him becoming a man of God. "Behold, is there anything too hard for Me?" No Lord, Nothing is too hard for You. In Your unfailing love, in Your incomprehensible wisdom and power, do for Selah's son as You are doing for mine! - And for the sons of all the other Selah's, fallen prey to snares and lies. Bring them face to face with You, Father, face to face with Jesus, the ONE Truth that sets men free. Let others see and know there is a God in heaven who lives and who hears the cries of those who trust in Him! Thank You Lord, Amen.

Joan, thank you so much for sharing your story--and praying for me---and praying for all of the sons "fallen prey to snares and lies." Life has gone on since I started this thread and I have not heard from my son in at least a month. But just yesterday, I woke from a dream that he had died. I felt like you did when...

On several occasions over the years, I was suddenly interrupted in my activities by a keen sense of my son's being in immediate peril. I would fall to my knees in prayer for him.

So yesterday, I fell to my knees and prayed tearfully, then got up and went about my day wondering as you did, "was that for real??"

When I inquired of the Lord, I did not feel that my son is physically dead and I did not try to interpret the dream (I didn't feel lead to consider this.) but, I did feel lead to pray!

Now to see your post and know you are praying too, is a very real comfort, indeed!

My prayer-life for my son has gone up and down in terms of hours spent in prayer for him. I don't know if this is okay with God but I am just saying it like it is.

My son started drugs eleven years ago (He is 25 now) and as a single mom, I did everything humanly possible to intervene during his teen years. I took Dr. David Jeremiah's and Dr. Dobson's advice (and any other Godly counsel I could find). By the power of the Holy Spirit, I found my son a Christian man who actually took Chris into his home for a couple of years, but that turned out to be a very bad situation for my son. I still believe the Holy Spirit lead us into that situation, but I also believe the devil influenced involved-persons to sin. Chris left that situation as a young adult, a fallen Christian, broken and disillusioned with Christianity (me too, to a point) and resumed his drug use. Only lately has it escalated to include meth.

I don't know if he is on meth now, as he did tell me that it scared him and he didn't want to continue it, but I also understand the incredible pull the drug has upon the human soul. I understand it affects the brain's pleasure center with 1,000 times greater measure than mere good-clean-fun.

When I attended a training regarding meth as part of my job several years ago, I wept to think of the young people who are caught up into this drug. I could see the insidious work of satan even as I sat there watching the video and listening to the trainer. I could not imagine a worse drug to entice our youth to death. My son was not among the users, at that time.

So...all of this to say God bless you! and thank you! for your prayers and for taking the time to share your story!

As I walked through a department store last night, I saw a big, mature man with a T-shirt on that proclaimed the "eternal salvation" of the soul to be the ultimate quest. I felt like a magnet as I (never have done this before) did a u-turn and followed the man to catch up to him. I asked, "Sir, may I ask you for something?" He turned with a thoughtful smile on his face. I asked him, "I am drawn to the words on your T-shirt because I have been praying for my son all day regarding his eternal salvation. My prayers for him for this life are waning, but my fervency for his eternal salvation is highlighted in my thoughts. Would you pray for him?" The man asked a few questions and ended by praying for my son right there in the aisle of the store. He was very encouraging and even shared this story: He and his family are praying for John, his nephew, a 32 year old meth addict who has not been seen or heard from for two months. John’s uncle explained to me that John’s mother is very concerned, to say the least, for her son. The uncle (said his name is Moses) prayed for Chris and John, and as quickly as I had approached him, I was gone---with peace and gratitude in my heart. To this incident too, I ask, “Lord, was this of you for me to speak to that man?” (I very, very rarely walk up to strangers.) I want to pray for John too as each young person caught in this insidious life-style is someone’s son or daughter, and they are broken too.

I wake this morning to your post and now, must go quickly and be about my busy day, but I will remember you, and the others mentioned here and most of all, I remember our Heavenly Father and His son, Jesus Christ. I ask Him to keep me faithful to pray, to not give up hope, but to remember that “faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things unseen.” Thank you for encouraging me to pray for his life now, not only his eternal life. I am encouraged to NOT give up hope for a life lived on earth that would give God glory and honor!

Joan, your prayer is my prayer too. Amen! May the Lord be with you and yours!

[Joan]

Selah, I feel for you in what you're going through. Few things hurt so intensely as awareness of the suffering or endangerment of one's child (regardless of age). But yea! Encouraging indicators suggest that perhaps there is more to the story than meets the eye. It's easy to imagine a skirmish over your son in the spiritual realms. If the Lord has used a variety of means to get your attention and is calling you to renewed vigour in prayer, I say, let's jump on board and side with the winning team! I agree with your wise view that we look beyond what we see (and want to see), to the eternal. It's just so hard to wait, though, isn't it?!? But not in futility, thank God. We can PRAY! Lord, prompt us at every turn. Let Selah's heartache be prayer before you as she suffers in Your presence. Be moved by her cries, put Your word in her mouth, and answer in Your great and awesome love for Your hurting servant. And in Your faithfulness, because of who You are. Prompt and nudge the rest of us to come alongside in supporting prayer, that we might be found faithful, too. In YOUR faithfulness! Thank You, Lord. And thank YOU, Selah, for entrusting us with your inside story. Bless you, Sister!
Joan

[Jepne]

Selah - I had completely missed your postings about your son until today! I appreciate what you are going through and your beautiful attitude about the whole thing, and Joan, what lovely prayers and wonderful testimony to the power of God. Thank you both for sharing.

We have a daughter we are praying for - alcohol, and all the sin that leads up to it and surrounds it. So, we will remember you in our prayers.
Bless you all - Jepne

[Joan]

May I add another concern to our list? John became a dad to me when I was 19. He was always kind to me, and I love him with all my heart. He has resisted the Gospel all these years, and he's tough; he cusses something fierce, nurses certain grudges and has a hot temper, yet he loves children and is drawn to me, so I've always believed he was drawn to what he sees of the Lord in us. He's in his 90's now, and remains vehemently resistant to any mention of God. Suddenly, it appears he will die of old age quite soon - any day. When I heard of this I raced to write a goodbye letter (they live two states away), entreating him to surrender himself to the Lord, but the Lord wouldn't permit it. Instead, He inspired me to write a personal tribute to Dad, and this I sent in a card with selected Scripture passages and a note that read, "Forgive me for wanting to share eternity with you, Dad. It's only because I love you so much." I just learned that he received my letter with tears. And on the same day, a woman in a prayer meeting told me she saw him surrendering to Christ in what she described as a vision-like picture that came to her as we were praying for him. She said that in her vision, he surrendered his life to Jesus just as he was passing from this life to the next. As eleventh-hour as it gets. I don't know her well enough yet to know how credible she is, but when she shared what she'd seen, my angst over this dear man was displaced with peace. Perhaps it was a word from the Lord. Still, for as long as he lingers, I must not fail to hold him up to our God in prayer. Will you pray for me, that I will be faithful in this? I don't understand prayer, but I know it's powerful - and in God's economy, verrry important. Thank you, Brothers and Sisters. How good of our Father to give us a heart for one another and the opportunity to come alongside one another with encouragement and prayer. What sweet fellowship I find with you here, on the forum! Affectionately, Joan

[Joan]

And Jepne, Yes! Your daughter!! I will let my prayer for Dad (aka John, aka Gramps) be my reminder to pray for Chris and your daughter.
Many blessings, and Good very-late night! Joan

[selah]

Joan and Jepne, your loved ones will be in my prayers too. Praise God! May you be blessed today!

selah*

[Joan]

I'm rejoicing. I wanted to ask for prayer for myself too, but felt in the Spirit that I was to trust the Lord, instead. I had missed several days of work due to agonizing pain in my head and neck that made it impossible to sleep, or to drive any distance, think straight, or remember what it was that I needed to do for long enough to do it. Almost immediately after my last post, the pain simply melted away. I was able to sleep well and wake up to an efficient morning. Yea! I'm preparing now for an ambitious three days on the road to make up for lost time. My income is not based on salary, but incentives, and I was about to say, 'Wish me good success,' - but no; PRAY me good success. Thank You, our Father in heaven, for Your overwhelming kindness! May Your name in us be holy! Bring our loved ones into Your kingdom, Give us our daily bread, Keep us from temptation, and Deliver us from the evil one today. Amen!

[selah]

I'm rejoicing. I wanted to ask for prayer for myself too, but felt in the Spirit that I was to trust the Lord, instead. I had missed several days of work due to agonizing pain in my head and neck that made it impossible to sleep, or to drive any distance, think straight, or remember what it was that I needed to do for long enough to do it. Almost immediately after my last post, the pain simply melted away. I was able to sleep well and wake up to an efficient morning. Yea! I'm preparing now for an ambitious three days on the road to make up for lost time. My income is not based on salary, but incentives, and I was about to say, 'Wish me good success,' - but no; PRAY me good success. Thank You, our Father in heaven, for Your overwhelming kindness! May Your name in us be holy! Bring our loved ones into Your kingdom, Give us our daily bread, Keep us from temptation, and Deliver us from the evil one today. Amen!

Off and on this morning, my thoughts keep gravitating to the fact that each of us is "Desperate for Jesus" for one reason or another, be it our hope to live eternally with Him, or for the souls of those we burden for, or for the everyday cares of this world. I too am in need of "good success" as I am looking for employment AND moving AND babysitting my grand daughter 30 hours a week. In fact, she just woke up from her nap so I must be quick to tell you that the Lord is teaching me how to live in perpetual desperation for Him while at the same time, know contentment in all circumstances. From the posts on this thread, it appears the Lord is mighty for each of you too!

Joan, Psalms 103:1-5 is an awesome scripture for those whom the Lord heals! Praise God for "melting away" your pain and limitations! I will continue to pray for your Dad and now that I know your need for work and continued improved health, I agree with you in prayer for these too. Jepne, I remember your daughter too, and praise the Lord for your recent blessing! May we share many more praises as we pray for one another.

[Joan]

You're right, Selah. A powerful reminder. When I read it I found myself move instantly from a busy Martha "get it done" mode, to being quietly still before God. In other words, Sister, you knocked the wind out of my sails.