Pray For the Peace of Jerusalem

Almighty and Eternal Father,
Strong To Save,
Slow To Anger,
and Infinitely Merciful and Just,
Holy and Sanctified
is Your Most Hallowed and Wonderful Name!
How Marvelous Are Your Works,
That the Very Heavens Declare Your Glory,
Without Embarrassment,
they Just Burst Forth in Sumptuous,
Overwhelming Praise!
The Stars,
The Rocks,
The Waterfalls,
Even The Lowly Grasses of The Field,
Burst Forth into Riotous Colors,
In Worship of Their Awesome Creator!
And yet we,
The Crown of Your Creation,
That which You Made in Your Image,
That in Whom You Breathed Your Spirit,
Those in Whom You Share Your Creative Genius,
unlike ANY OTHER CREATURE of Your Wonderful Works,
Continue to rebel against You,
And sin against You and against Our Fellow Man,
and not Believe You,
and Disobey You,
and not follow Your Precepts,
even when You give us Your Word!
Dear Father,
We Thank You For Your Awesome Mercy and For Your Steadfast Love,
Which Never Ceases.

We Pray For The Peace of Jerusalem,
According to Your Will and Promise.
We Pray For the People and Leaders of Israel,
that They Will Look to You for the Protection
and Prosperity of their Nation.
We Also Pray For Revival in our own Beloved USA.

  We Pray For The Swift and Sure Coming of Messiah,
Blessed Be He,
To Establish His Kingdom,
and Make All Things Right.

Blessings To All Who Visit This Garden of Prayer.

Hallelujah and Amen

ML/LTOS

Pray For the Peace of Jerusalem

Today's story prompted me to do a little research into an event that occurred during my teenage years in the neighborhoods of Boston, MA. It was a cataclysmic event, that dragged through many years, and caused caused a huge amount of pain and suffering to a large number of working-class people. Long before the torturous horror of "The Big Dig", there was another miserable, ill-conceived project called "The I95 Inner Beltway Extension." Here is one book available on this subject, which I can't afford to buy, so all I have are my own memories.

Here is what I remember:

In the late 60's I began to see whole streets in my neighborhood being abandoned and houses boarded up. The same thing was happening in our neighboring enclaves of Hyde Park, Jamaica Plain, Roslindale, and Roxbury. While some of the inner city neighborhoods were in need of "renewal", most of the affected streets sported rows of modest single-family homes, fenced-in yards, driveways and garages, lawns and flower gardens. The ugly slash of demolition stretched in a wide line from the center of Boston to the last outpost before the city border, in Readville. I was told that this was called "Eminent Domain" and that there was going to be an extension of Interstate 95 with an "inner beltway" around the city. The people who lived in these neighborhoods were very upset, as these were homes built around the turn of the century, and had been the abode of many generations of children. The neighborhoods had their own "personalities" and were often centered around a church or ethnic group. It was like a patchwork quilt rather than a homogeneous blend, and the geography of the area made it work.

Anyway, it seemed that the project went ahead without any real plan or concern about the people who lived there. So, after displacing hundreds of people, destroying the fabric of the community, bulldozing historic homes, and leaving a swath of destruction behind, the plans for the Beltway were SCRAPPED, leaving an indelible scar on the city.

A half-century later, some of the land has been reclaimed, by cookie-cutter housing, Roxbury Community College, The Arthur Ashe Tennis center, and a huge mosque. (maybe that was the plan all along?), and it seems impossible to find information about it, except the aforementioned $90.00 book that I can't afford. But I'm not dead yet, and I REMEMBER.

Looking back, and reading today's Bible Story, we can see how some things never change.

Come and Pray For the Peace of Jerusalem, For Our FRiends in Need, For Persecuted Believers, and For Our Beloved Nation.

“You are like light for the whole world. A city built on a hill cannot be hid. No one lights a lamp and puts it under a bowl; instead it is put on the lampstand, where it gives light for everyone in the house. In the same way your light must shine before people, so that they will see the good things you do and praise your Father in heaven.” (Matthew 5:14-16)

God Bless America!

Blessings To All Who Visit This Garden of Prayer.

This Symbol Represents Christians in The Middle East, who desperately need our Prayers.

Hallelujah and Amen

ML/LTOS