Community Prayer Request: A Mother’s Depression

We ask you to come together again in prayer for another friend in our community.  Yesterday he was told that his mother was hospitalized because she tried to end her life.  She is suffering from depression.  We’re told she will be released from the hospital today.  He’s very distraught.  He’s had a difficult upbringing all his life.  His parents were divorced when he was young, and given their personal problems with addictions, he was forced to grow up fast and take care of himself and his younger brother.  He has worked really hard to breakaway from the generational sins of his family and has done well for himself both personally and professionally.  He is not a believer however he is not closed to the notion of God.  Will you come together with us to lift this family in prayer?  Will you pray for redemption, reconciliation, healing, protection, and comfort?  Will you pray that they come to experience and know in their hearts the love of Jesus Christ?  Thank you.

“I waited patiently for the LORD; he turned to me and heard my cry. He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire; he set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand. He put a new song in my mouth, a hymn of praise to our God. Many will see and fear and put their trust in the LORD.” psalm 40: 1-3

Open Thread: How Has God Protected You?

In the spirit of our friend Pastor Sam’s awesome testimony from earlier this week, we here at WitnessLA.org want to hear how you, our readers, have been protected by God in the past.  Please share any stories you have of divine intervention, near-death experiences, healing miracles or any other way God has protected you, your family, or your friends by submitting a comment below.  They can be grand or small.  We just look forward to reading your stories and for our community to be blessed by witnessing God’s hand on each of your lives!

“When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you.  When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze.”  (Isaiah 43:2, NIV)

Reading the Bible At Denny’s At 5AM

Have you ever felt like you should have died?  That if God hadn’t put you in the right place at the right time, or that if even the smallest detail had been different, something would have happened to you?  Our friend Pastor Sam shares an incredible story about how God protected a member of his church through the leading of the Holy Spirit and the intuition that he needed to be at Denny’s at 5 in the morning.

I am a pastor at a church in the San Fernando Valley.  Last year we began to realize that our community valued the word of God, but not really.  Not enough to actually read it.  We began to notice that our encounters with the Holy Spirit had an undeniable shallowness.  With that much of it became man-centered.  We were led to have a season where we established bible reading in our lives.  Not sporadically but chapter by chapter, book by book.  Not to read into it but to read
what’s contained in it.  It was hard work.  Many people were not enamored with the idea but the leaders felt that this was what God was leading us to do.  So people began to meet everyday online, in cafes, and through other ways to read the Scripture everyday and for prayer.
      
I was praying at the time that our community would really value God’s word.  I was led by the Lord to pray that the people would realize the gravity of His word in our lives.  A sister at the church started a group at 5 AM in the morning at a local Denny’s.  2-3 people were there every morning.  One of our brothers thought of going to the gathering everyday but always ended up hitting the snooze button on his alarm.  Then one morning he woke up at 5 AM and for some reason couldn’t go back to bed…[click “Read More” below to continue]

Read More

Our Father is Always Faithful

The Lord is truly good.

“But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.” (Matthew 6:33)

I realized that the Lord is so faithful when we remain in His love through obeying what He desires. His commands are not there to make you feel used or abused (although many misrepresent God to be that way). His commandments say “do not murder,” “do not commit adultery,” “do not bear false witness…” Is it that horrible to not murder, cheat and lie to someone? If that is the case, why are there people that hate on the God when He asks us to obey these directions? I believe if all mankind would simply obey what He desires for us to do, I’m sure we would be living in a different world.

But of course this isn’t the case. Our natural inclination is for selfishness. Think about it. People don’t start out wanting to kill people, lie, cheat on their spouses… We are a fallen world that is in need of a savior. And that savior is Jesus Christ.

I know this post is for what is happening currently. There is a lot going on in my life that I can delve into. However I feel it appropriate for some reason to share a bit of my former life before coming to Christ. For whoever out there that is in need of someone to understand and to possibly find hope, read on.

I grew up in a family of four. My father was a compulsive gambler for 15 years, causing us to lose our house, cars, and relations to extended family members. We have filed for bankruptcy, ran away to Korea to escape the threats of loan sharks, and had lawsuits on us. I had moved to the cities of Cerritos, Bellflower, La Mirada, Downey, Northridge, Granada Hills, and Los Angeles all in my elementary years. Why? When you don’t know where the rent check is going because your father has an addictive problem, you get kicked out. It was in Northridge that my family hit rock bottom, as my mother contemplated suicide asking her church friends if suicide was okay. My brother had pains in his stomach but we could not afford to take him to the hospital. I was a very confused child, and luck would have it, picked up the habit of shoplifting and watching pornography. And to make matters worse… The Northridge earthquake destroyed our home.

I don’t know how I am living today. There were more details to follow, as I involved myself with drugs, gang members and a life filled with vengeful anger. I hated life, my family and the misery I created for myself.

During my freshmen year in high school, I was very truant and disruptive at Gahr High school. In addition to the multiple suspensions for threatening teachers, creating commotion at school, I was getting beat at home. Most of it was my fault. I created the mess that infuriated my parents. But I can attest to the emotional damage that physical abuse can produce in a child. Even now, after many years of healing, I have tendencies to react to hurtful words with instant defense. Being called obscene names, hit in the face with various items (i.e. telephone, cups, etc.) it’s a blessing I wasn’t beat with a golf club or bats like some of my friends. I recall one time that I was caught shoplifting at Costco. My father was informed of the situation. He grabbed me, beat me, and all that there was left was freshly colored burgundy stains on our white carpet, all extracted from my shivering face. My mother was bruised from being the buffer between my father’s fists and my face. For some reason, as I write this I cannot help but tear up knowing that there are still some of you out there that have suffered like this before (or still is)… [click “Read More” below to continue]

Read More