"Safe sex" is the self-delusion of shallow souls.

Excerpt from Part III of a great set of articles on courtship and marriage by Professor Leon R. Kass:

Thus how shallow an understanding of sexuality is embodied in our current clamoring for "safe sex." Sex is by its nature unsafe. All interpersonal relations are necessarily risky and serious ones especially so. And to give oneself to another, body and soul, is hardly playing it safe. Sexuality is at its core profoundly "unsafe," and it is only thanks to contraception that we are encouraged to forget its inherent "dangers." These go beyond the hazards of venereal disease, which are always a reminder and a symbol of the high stakes involved, and beyond the risks of pregnancy and the pains and dangers of childbirth to the mother. To repeat, sexuality itself means mortality — equally for both man and woman. Whether we know it or not, when we are sexually active we are voting with our genitalia for our own demise. "Safe sex" is the self-delusion of shallow souls.

It is for this reason that procreation remains at the core of a proper understanding of marriage. Mutual pleasure and mutual service between husband and wife are, of course, part of the story. So too are mutual admiration and esteem, especially where the partners are deserving. A friendship of shared pursuits and pastimes enhances any marriage, all the more so when the joint activities exercise deeper human capacities. But it is precisely the common project of procreation that holds together what sexual differentiation sometimes threatens to drive apart. Through children, a good common to both husband and wife, male and female achieve some genuine unification (beyond the mere sexual "union" that fails to do so): The two become one through sharing generous (not needy) love for this third being as good. Flesh of their flesh, the child is the parents' own commingled being externalized, and given a separate and persisting existence; unification is enhanced also by their commingled work of rearing. Providing an opening to the future beyond the grave, carrying not only our seed but also our names, our ways, and our hopes that they will surpass us in goodness and happiness, children are a testament to the possibility of transcendence. Gender duality and sexual desire, which first draws our love upward and outside of ourselves, finally provide for the partial overcoming of the confinement and limitation of perishable embodiment altogether. It is as the supreme institution devoted to this renewal of human possibility that marriage finds its deepest meaning and highest function.

There is no substitute for the contribution that the shared work of raising children makes to the singular friendship and love of husband and wife. Precisely because of its central procreative mission, and, even more, because children are yours for a lifetime, this is a friendship that cannot be had with any other person. Uniquely, it is a friendship that does not fly from, but rather embraces wholeheartedly, the finitude of its members, affirming without resentment the truth of our human condition. Not by mistake did God create a woman — rather than a dialectic partner — to cure Adam's aloneness; not by accident does the same biblical Hebrew verb mean both to know sexually and to know the truth — including the generative truth about the meaning of being man and woman.

Marriage and procreation are, therefore, at the heart of a serious and flourishing human life, if not for everyone at least for the vast majority. Most of us know from our own experience that life becomes truly serious when we become responsible for the lives of others for whose being in the world we have said, "We do." It is fatherhood and motherhood that teach most of us what it took to bring us into our own adulthood. And it is the desire to give not only life but a good way of life to our children that opens us toward a serious concern for the true, the good, and even the holy. Parental love of children leads once wayward sheep back into the fold of church and synagogue. In the best case, it can even be the beginning of the sanctification of life — yes, even in modern times.

Part I

Part II

Part III

The Fear of the Lord is the Beginning of Wisdom

...but this isn't the fear of the Lord:

Halloween Too Scary for Some Kids, Study Finds
By Heather Whipps
Special to LiveScience
posted: 27 October 2005
11:31 am ET

It is the adults who should be afraid this Halloween. Not of ghouls and goblins, but of permanently scarring their children.

In a recent study of six- and seven-year-olds in the Philadelphia area, Penn State psychologist Cindy Dell Clark found that most parents underestimate just how terrifying the holiday can be for young kids.

There have been few studies to examine how the holiday affects children. Child psychologists generally caution parents that the fright of some aspects of Halloween can be too much for the very young, and advise adults to keep a close eye on children and remind them of what is real and what is not.

According to Clark, who interviewed parents and children after three Halloweens, younger children may be unwilling participants in the whole ritual.

The key ingredient in the recipe of Halloween fright is, of course, death.

"Intriguingly, Halloween is a holiday when adults assist children in behaviors taboo and out of bounds," Clark writes in the anthropological journal Ethos. "It is striking that on Halloween, death-related themes are intended as entertainment for the very children whom adults routinely protect."

Kids as young as six and seven don't differentiate between real death and the store-bought skeleton figures hanging in the trees and fake tombstones on the grass.

"Children see things on a real plane, as opposed to adults, who are trying to get around real themes like death by treating them as fun."

Conducting her study, Clark observed young children cowering from fear in front of the haunted displays and graveyard scenes common in so many American neighborhoods at Halloween.

Children interpret the frights of Halloween differently depending on their personal situations, such as the recent death of a relative or pet. An especially harrowing Halloween experience might have long-lasting effects.

'Start of life' gene discovered

How in the WORLD could evolution have had ANYTHING to do with this???

Scientists have found the gene responsible for controlling a first key step in the [pro]creation of new life.

"Lead researcher Dr Tim Karr, from the University of Bath, said: 'All sexually reproducing animals do the same kind of DNA 'dance' when the DNA from the mother's egg cell and the father's sperm cell meet for the first time.'

When the sperm enters the egg, its DNA has to undergo a complete transformation so that it can properly join with the female DNA to form a genetically complete new life.

Sperm makes this change by swapping the type of 'packing material, known as histone proteins, it contains.
The result is called the male pronucleus, which can then combine with the female pronucleus. "

"A slight mutation in the HIRA gene means that life does not even get started."

Simply amazing.


Full Story

Second Thoughts!!

Some very serious thoughts here…
Second Thoughts Anyone?
by Gary Bauer, President, American Values

My friends, I would rather write about anything else than bring up Harriet Miers again. But with each passing day the information becomes more and more troubling. At some point, those who feel they should support Harriet Miers because they trust the White House have got to step back and take another look. At some point, the president has got to revisit this. And I think that point is now here.

For weeks, I have objected to the "stealth strategy" of nominating someone without a clear record, who has not written or said one word about Roe v. Wade or any of the other important constitutional issues of our time. In the past, this failed strategy has been meant to fool liberals. But it now appears as if conservatives are the ones being fooled.In July of 1993, Miers gave a speech entitled, "Women and Courage." She offered glowing praise for Ruth Bader Ginsburg's ascension to the Supreme Court and Janet Reno's appointment as the first female attorney general. Not many conservatives were excited by either fact.

According to The Washington Post, Miers "also showed sympathy for feminist causes…urging her audience to support female candidates. She recited a list of national and state female leaders that crossed the political spectrum, including Gloria Steinem, then First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton and Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison." If I were Senator Hutchison, I would object to being lumped in with Clinton and Steinem! But what conservative would hold up Hillary as an example of progress for women? Unfortunately, it gets worse.

A few months before, Miers addressed the Executive Women of Dallas. (Remember, this more than a decade after her religious conversion and four years after she filled out a pro-life questionnaire.) Here is what she said about abortion: "The ongoing debate continues surrounding the attempt to once again criminalize abortions or to once and for all guarantee the freedom of the individual women's right to decide for herself whether she will have an abortion."

Notice how she described the issue: "criminalize" versus "guarantee the freedom of women." The pro-life side never talks about "criminalizing abortion." We don't want to send women to jail. That is how Hillary would define the issue. But, let's give her the benefit of the doubt. Maybe she was just "playing devil's advocate" and offered an extreme example. That doesn't explain the following statement, and I am quoting from her speech again: "The underlying theme in most of these cases is the insistence of more self-determination. And the more I think about these issues, the more self-determination makes sense."

To be clear, "self-determination" is the legal underpinning of the Left's argument for not only abortion, but also euthanasia and same-sex "marriage."Finally, there was this line, "Legislating religion or morality we gave up on a long time ago. Remembering that fact appears to offer the most effective solutions to these problems..."

Who normally says this kind of stuff?

The folks trying to legalize same-sex "marriage," take "under God" out of Pledge, and ban the Ten Commandments from public view. All of our laws are based on morality. From murder to insider stock trading, almost all law is based on the Ten Commandments or some concept of right and wrong. When millions of "values voters" went into their voting booths and reelected George W. Bush and sent more conservatives to the United States Senate, I don't think they had in mind putting someone on the Supreme Court who thought legislating morality was a mistake!

If conservatives at all levels - including those in the Senate - can't stop for a second and reevaluate their loyalties, then we run the risk of losing the chance to make the Supreme Court pro-family and pro-life for the next 20 years.My friends, this is not meant to be a personal attack on Harriet Miers. Not at all. I am sure she is a decent woman, and I think she has served President Bush very well as his personal attorney during his tenure as governor of Texas and at the White House - always looking out for her client's best interests, as any good, able attorney would.

Unfortunately, reading her own words, I am not convinced that Harriet Miers shares the president's conservative philosophy, and I believe her nomination should be withdrawn. As Robert Bork said, it is a disaster on every level.On the grounds of competence, there was at least one glaring constitutional error on her questionnaire to the Senate Judiciary Committee regarding the "proportional representation requirement of the Equal Protection Clause."

There is no such requirement. That statement and others led Judiciary Committee Chairman Arlen Specter, no friend of conservatives, to say that Miss Miers needed a "crash course in constitutional law." Other senators have echoed that sentiment.

On the grounds of judicial philosophy, I would also add that her statements on the rule of precedent are deeply troubling. In her questionnaire to the Senate Judiciary Committee, Miers wrote,"…whether the prior decision is wrong is only the beginning of the inquiry. The court must also consider other factors, such as whether the prior decision has proven unworkable, whether developments in the law have undermined the precedent, and whether legitimate reliance interests militate against overruling."

To me, that reads like a justification for upholding Roe v. Wade and the continued destruction of one million innocent children a year.Let me say something in defense of the president. I don't believe he knew about the speeches. He told us he had not discussed abortion with her and he did not run for governor of Texas until a year after she gave these speeches.

But now that these things are coming to light, this is a perfect opportunity for the president to say he must withdraw the nomination and appoint someone who clearly shares his values and conservative judicial philosophy.

Acceptance of Birth Control Doomed Mainline Churches

The decline membership in of mainline churches over the last century had more to do with sex than theology, research by a trio of sociologists suggests.

Differences in fertility rates account for 70 percent of the decline of mainline Protestant church membership from 1900 to 1975 and the simultaneous rise in conservative church membership, the sociologists said.

“For most of the 20th century, conservative women had more children than mainline women did,” three sociologists—Michael Hout of the University of California-Berkley, Andrew Greeley of the University of Arizona, and Melissa Wilde of Indiana University—wrote in Christian Century.

“It took most of the 20th century for conservative women to adopt family-planning practices that have become dominant in American society,” the writers said. “Or to put the matter differently, the so-called decline of the mainline may ultimately be attributable to its earlier approval of contraception.”

While mainline churches could claim 60 percent of the total Protestant congregants in 1900, their share fell to 40 percent in 1960. Many religious observers and some sociologists attributed the drop—and simultaneous growth of conservative churches—to the lethargy of liberalism....

“Higher fertility and better retention...account for the conservatives’ rising share of the Protestant population,” they concluded.

However, the authors suggested, the trends underlying the mainline’s decline “may be nearing their end.”

Fertility rates are now virtually the same between the two groups and will produce only a 1 percent decline in mainline membership over the next decade, they noted.
“Unless conservative Protestants increase their family size or mainline Protestants further reduce theirs, this factor in mainline decline will not be present in the future.”

[Makes sense to me. God considers children a blessing. The modern American church considers them a burden.]

Here's what the instructions are from the Source of All Instruction:

“Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth." (Gen. 9:1)

"El Shaddai bless you and make you fruitful and multiply you, that you may become a company of peoples." (Gen. 28:3)

"I will make you exceedingly fruitful, and I will make you into nations, and kings shall come from you." (Gen. 17:6)

"The people of Israel were fruitful and increased greatly; they multiplied and grew exceedingly strong, so that the land was filled with them." (Exodus 1:7)

"Unless the Lord builds the house,
those who build it labor in vain.
Sons are indeed a heritage from the Lord,
the fruit of the womb a reward.
Like arrows in the hand of a warrior
are the sons of one's youth.
Happy is the man who has his quiver full of them."
(Ps. 127:1,3-4)

The Muslims and the Mormans haven't bought into the lie of the humanists. Why can't the Christians figure it out? Until we do, expect to continue to see decline.

Schools: Anything But Christianity?

“A case brought by parents and children challenging a California school district for its practice of teaching 12-year-old students to "become Muslims" will be heard in U.S. appeals court today.
As WND reported, the lawsuit was filed by the Thomas More Law Center against the Byron Union School District and various school officials to stop the "Islam simulation" materials and methods used in the Excelsior Elementary School in Byron, Calif.
The United States Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit in San Francisco, widely considered the nation's most liberal, will hear oral arguments in the case.
The Thomas More Law Center says that for three weeks, "impressionable 12-year-old students" were, among other things, placed into Islamic city groups; took Islamic names; wore identification tags that displayed their new Islamic name and the star and crescent moon; handed materials that instructed them to 'Remember Allah always so that you may prosper'; completed the Islamic Five Pillars of Faith, including fasting; and memorized and recited the 'Bismillah' or 'In the name of God, the Merciful, the Compassionate,' which students also wrote on banners hung on the classroom walls.
Students also played "jihad games" during the course, which was part of the school's world history and geography program.
The lawsuit also alleges students were encouraged to use such phrases in their speech as "Allah Akbar," which is Arabic for "God is great," and were required to fast during lunch period to simulate fasting during the Islamic holy month of Ramadan.
Thomas More's chief counsel, Richard Thompson, believes there's a double standard at work in this case.
"If the students had done similar activities in a class on Christianity, a constitutional violation would surely have been found," he said. "If the public school's practice is upheld on appeal, all public schools should begin teaching classes on Christianity in the same manner as the Islam class was taught in this case."

It's a Crackdown, not a Crackup

Good commentary from Rush Limbaugh:

"I love being a conservative. We conservatives are proud of our philosophy. Unlike our liberal friends, who are constantly looking for new words to conceal their true beliefs and are in a perpetual state of reinvention, we conservatives are unapologetic about our ideals. We are confident in our principles and energetic about openly advancing them. We believe in individual liberty, limited government, capitalism, the rule of law, faith, a color-blind society and national security. We support school choice, enterprise zones, tax cuts, welfare reform, faith-based initiatives, political speech, homeowner rights and the war on terrorism. And at our core we embrace and celebrate the most magnificent governing document ever ratified by any nation--the U.S. Constitution. Along with the Declaration of Independence, which recognizes our God-given natural right to be free, it is the foundation on which our government is built and has enabled us to flourish as a people.

...

We conservatives are never stronger than when we are advancing our principles. And that's the nature of our current debate over the nomination of Harriet Miers. Will she respect the Constitution? Will she be an originalist who will accept the limited role of the judiciary to interpret and uphold it, and leave the elected branches--we, the people--to set public policy? Given the extraordinary power the Supreme Court has seized from the representative parts of our government, this is no small matter. Roe v. Wade is a primary example of judicial activism. Regardless of one's position on abortion, seven unelected and unaccountable justices simply did not have the constitutional authority to impose their pro-abortion views on the nation. The Constitution empowers the people, through their elected representatives in Congress or the state legislatures, to make this decision.

...

The Miers nomination shows the strength of the conservative movement. This is no 'crackup.' It's a crackdown. We conservatives are unified in our objectives. And we are organized to advance them. The purpose of the Miers debate is to ensure that we are doing the very best we can to move the nation in the right direction. And when all is said and done, we will be even stronger and more focused on our agenda and defeating those who obstruct it, just in time for 2006 and 2008. Lest anyone forget, for several years before the 1980 election, we had knockdown battles within the GOP. The result: Ronald Reagan won two massive landslides."

Asceticism

Colossians 2: 18 - 19 (ESV )

"Let no one disqualify you, insisting on asceticism and worship of angels, going on in detail about visions, puffed up without reason by his sensuous mind, and not holding fast to the Head, from whom the whole body, nourished and knit together through its joints and ligaments, grows with a growth that is from God."

I've been reading the new English Standard Version for daily readings and this was part of today's passage. I find the translation of this verse really interesting, as most versions translate the Greek word, Tapeinophrosune , as humility or lowliness of mind, rather than asceticism. Honestly, I didn't know what asceticism was, so I looked it up :

noun: rigorous self-denial and active self-restraint
noun: the doctrine that through renunciation of worldly pleasures it is possible to achieve a high spiritual or intellectual state

Usually, we think of "humility" as a noble virtue. In fact, Paul uses the same Greek word in Col. 3:12, where we are told to "put on... humility."

However, in the above context, the humility is false. It is asceticism: insisting, or delighting (as the NIV says) in false humility. It is trying to do something right, but under our own strength. It is "pulling yourself up by the bootstraps."

Paul says, "Let no one disqualify you, insisting on asceticism...

Sadly, there are so many churches today that preach and teach asceticism.

What a powerful message here, though! The Lord is saying, "Don't try to do it yourself in your own strength, expecting praise for your efforts. You must let God's grace and supernatural ability buoy you up! If you do it "by your own bootstraps," then the glory will belong to you alone. After all, you'd be a "self-made" man.

I think we're tempted to do things that way and then claim that God did them. However, this only brings a partial peace; a partial victory.

I know, however, that it is the experiential knowledge of Truth that sets us free and makes us able to truly have the victory. When Jesus is the one doing the work through us, then our load is effortless. Our task is light. Our burden is easy and we will walk in the spirit of peace and victory!

The only peace, the only joy, the only self-control that I want to have is that given to me by Him. I don't want to do it by myself. My results will only produce asceticism.

unAmerican Girl

WorldNetDaily: "Family advocates are warning parents that the popular American Girl doll maker, owned by Mattel, is partnering with a group that supports abortion and lesbianism.

In August, American Girl launched the 'I Can' campaign with Girls Inc., urging girls to take a pledge and purchase a special bracelet. "

"Parents need to know that this effort to promote self-esteem among girls is not as innocent as it seems," said Ann Scheidler, executive director of the Pro-Life Action League. "While Girls Inc. has some good programs, they also support abortion, oppose abstinence-only education for girls and condone lesbianism."

On its website, Girls Inc. says it supports a girl's right to abort an unwanted baby and promotion of contraceptives for girls.

The group also offers resources encouraging lesbian and bisexual lifestyles.

"We're encouraging parents, grandparents and other family members to write and call American Girl President Ellen L. Brothers to object to the company's support for Girls Inc."

The Church Revolution has Begun!

«Relying upon national research conducted over the past several years, George Barna profiles a group of more than 20 million adults throughout the nation labeled “revolutionaries.” He noted that although measures of traditional church participation in activities such as worship attendance, Sunday school, prayer, and Bible reading have remained relatively unchanged during the past twenty years, the Revolutionary faith movement is growing rapidly.

“These are people who are less interested in attending church than in being the church,” he explained. “We found that there is a significant distinction in the minds of many people between the local church – with a small ‘c’ – and the universal Church – with a capital ‘C’. Revolutionaries tend to be more focused on being the Church, capital C, whether they participate in a congregational church or not.”

“A common misconception about revolutionaries,” he continued, “is that they are disengaging from God when they leave a local church. We found that while some people leave the local church and fall away from God altogether, there is a much larger segment of Americans who are currently leaving churches precisely because they want more of God in their life but cannot get what they need from a local church. They have decided to get serious about their faith by piecing together a more robust faith experience. Instead of going to church, they have chosen to be the Church, in a way that harkens back to the Church detailed in the Book of Acts»

...
“I would not be surprised,” the California-based researcher noted, “if at some point this becomes known as the Third Great Awakening in our nation’s history. This spiritual renaissance is very different from the prior two religious awakenings in America, but it may well become the most profound.”

[This is exactly what the Lord has been telling me for several years! For those who I've spoken to about this, I've even called it the Third Great Awakening. Praise the Lord for what He's doing in the earth!]

Click here to read more!

What the New Testament Church Prayed For

Wow! What a great list!

What the New Testament Church Prayed For

They called on God to vindicate his people in their cause.
And will not God vindicate his elect, who cry to him day and night? Will he delay long over them? (Luke 18:7).

They called on God to save unbelievers.
Brethren, my heart's desire and prayer to God for them is that they may be saved (Romans 10:1).

They called on God to direct the use of the sword.
Take the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, praying through all prayer and supplication on every occasion . . . (Ephesians 6:17-18)

They called on God for boldness in proclamation.
Pray at all times in the Spirit . . . and also for me, that utterance may be given me in opening my mouth boldly to proclaim the mystery of the gospel (Ephesians 6:18-19)
And now, Lord, look upon their threats, and grant to thy servants to speak thy word with all boldness (Acts 4:29).

They called on God for signs and wonders.
And now Lord . . . grant your servants to speak thy word with boldness . . . while you stretch out your hand to heal, and signs and wonders are performed through the name of thy holy servant Jesus (Acts 4:30).
Elijah was a man of like nature with ourselves and he prayed fervently that it might not rain, and for three years and six months it did not rain on the earth. Then he prayed again and the heaven gave rain, and the earth brought forth its fruit (James 5:17-18).

They called on God for the healing of wounded comrades.
Let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord, and the prayer of faith will save the sick man and the Lord will raise him up (James 5:14-15).

They called on God for the healing of unbelievers.
It happened that the father of Publius lay sick with fever and dysentery; and Paul visited him and prayed, and putting his hands on him healed him (Acts 28:8).

They called on God for the casting out of demons.
And he said to them, "This kind cannot be driven out by anything but prayer" (Mark 9:29).

They called on God for miraculous deliverances.
So Peter was kept in prison; but earnest prayer for him was made to God by the church . . . When he realized [he had been freed], he went to the house of Mary, the mother of John whose other name was Mark, where many were gathered together and were praying (Acts 12:5,12).
But about midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them, and suddenly there was a great earthquake (Acts 16:25-26).

They called on God for the raising of the dead.
But Peter put them all outside and knelt down and prayed; then turning to the body he said, "Tabitha, rise." And she opened her eyes, and when she saw Peter she sat up (Acts 9:40).

They called on God to supply his troops with necessities.
Give us this day our daily bread (Matthew 6:11).

They called on God for strategic wisdom.
If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives to all men generously and without reproaching, and it will be given him (James 1:5).

They called on God to establish leadership in the outposts.
And when they had appointed elders for them in every church, with prayer and fasting they committed them to the Lord in whom they believed (Acts 14:23).

They called on God to send out reinforcements.
Pray therefore the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest (Matthew 9:38).
While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, "Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them." Then after fasting and praying they laid their hands on them and sent them off (Acts 13:2-3).

They called on God for the success of other apostles.
I appeal to you, brethren, by our Lord Jesus Christ and by the love of the Spirit, to strive together with me in your prayers to God on my behalf, that I may be delivered from the unbelievers in Judea, and that my service for Jerusalem may be acceptable to the saints (Romans 15:30-31).

They called on God for unity and harmony in the ranks.
I do not pray for these only, but also for those who believe in me through their word, that they may all be one; even as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that thou hast sent me (John 17:20-21).

They called on God for the encouragement of togetherness.
[We are] praying earnestly night and day that we may see you face to face and supply what is lacking in your faith? (1 Thessalonians 3:10).

They called on God for a mind of discernment.
And it is my prayer that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and all discernment, so that you may approve what is excellent, and may be pure and blameless for the day of Christ (Philippians 1:9-10).

They called on God for a knowledge of his will.
And so, from the day we heard of it, we have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding (Colossians 1:9).

They called on God to know him better.
[We have not ceased to pray for you to be] increasing in the knowledge of God (Colossians 1:10; cf. Ephesians 1:17).

They called on God for power to comprehend the love of Christ.
I bow my knees before the Father . . . that you may have power to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth and to know the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge (Ephesians 3:14,18).

They called on God for a deeper sense of assured hope.
I do not cease to give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers . . . that you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints (Ephesians 1:16,18).

They called on God for strength and endurance.
[We have not ceased to pray for you to be] strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy (Colossians 1:11; cf. Ephesians 3:16).

They called on God for deeper sense of his power within them.
I do not cease to give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers . . . that you may know . . . what is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe (Ephesians 1:16,19).

They called on God that their faith not be destroyed.
I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail; and when you have turned again, strengthen your brethren (Luke 22:32).
Watch at all times, praying that you may have strength to escape all these things that will take place, and to stand before the Son of man (Luke 21:36).

They called on God for greater faith.
Immediately the father of the child cried out and said, "I believe; help my unbelief!" (Mark 9:24; cf. Ephesians 3:17).

They called on God that they might not fall into temptation.
Lead us not into temptation (Matthew 6:13).
Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation; the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak (Matthew 26:41).

They called on God that he would complete their resolves.
To this end we always pray for you, that our God may make you worthy of his call, and may fulfil every good resolve and work of faith by his power (2 Thessalonians 1:11).

They called on God that they would do good works.
[We have not ceased to pray for you that you] lead a life worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him, bearing fruit in every good work (Colossians 1:10).

They called on God for forgiveness of their sins.
Forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors (Matthew 6:12).

They called on God for protection from the evil one.
Deliver us from evil (Matthew 6:13)

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