Sunday, April 4, 2010

MAY I ASK YOU TO PRAY?

Our son-in-law David left early this morning for Iraq. He has a few weeks of training, traveling and sitting around and waiting before he actually arrives at his destination, but he left his family behind for the next seven months or so this morning. He has no idea, really, what lies ahead. No one seems to know what his assignment will be, or if they do, they are not telling him.

Please pray for David as he goes through this new experience in his life. Pray for strength and comfort in this time of separation from his beloved family. Pray for safety as he travels and throughout his time in Iraq. Pray for wisdom as he leads the men below him, and serves the officers above him. Pray for good health in a new environment. Pray that he will find plenty to do and some good Christian fellowship to help pass the time and keep loneliness from setting in. Most of all, pray that he will be used by the Lord in the lives around him, and be a good testimony to all. Pray, too, that this will bring him even closer to the Lord and that God will use this time to refine him into an even more godly man than he already is.

Please pray for Julie as she tries to take up the empty role that David leaves behind him. Most of all, that she will have wisdom in helping the kids through this time, but also that she will have the strength and knowledge to handle all the responsibilities that David always did. Pray for her to have peace and comfort while her husband is away and possibly in harm’s way. Pray for safety for her and the kids while they are alone and that hopefully they will not have any big health issues or car problems (two things that always seem to be popping up in their family.) Pray that she will lean on the Lord and feel His arms around her in the hard times.

Please pray for Benjamin, Joshua and Hannah while Daddy is gone. They are extremely close to their daddy and have never been separated from him more than a few days at a time, and then they could always at least talk to him on the phone. There may be days or even weeks, now, that they will have no communication. Pray that this will be a character-building experience for them, and that they will learn to trust and love the Lord even more. I know they will help their mother all they can and be good kids, but there may be things going on inside their hearts and minds, and I would ask you to pray that if there are fears or anger or whatever, that the Lord will help them overcome them.

And finally, please pray for us as we seek to support and encourage them all. We will do all we can to communicate with David whenever we are allowed to, and we have planned at least three times while he is gone to get together with Julie and the kids either in Alabama or here. I know hundreds of thousands of families have gone through this before, and most for longer than six months, or even multiple times. This is our first time to go through this, though. We praise the Lord it is not for long, and hopefully David will return safe and sound. In the meantime, will you pray?

Thank you.

1 comment:

  1. We will certainly be praying for David, Julie and the children at this time. You have listed the prayer requests well. I know God will bless their family through this difficult time as they put their trust in Him.

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