John 11:1

John 11:1 says, Now a certain man was sick, named Lazarus, of Bethany, the town of Mary and her sister Martha.  Lazarus is sick of Bethany.  He is the brother of Mary and Martha.  Mary was the one who anointed Jesus' feet with ointment and wiped it with her hair.  Verse two adds, (It was that Mary which anointed the Lord with ointment, and wiped his feet with her hair, whose brother Lazarus was sick.)  They were friends of Jesus.  We hear today about people who are friends of someone, such as a president, and that is somehow supposed to make them more important.  This was not what Lazarus, Mary and Martha were trying to claim.  Mary and Martha knew Lazarus was sick and that Jesus could help him.  We need to have that same faith in God today and come to Him asking and not demanding.  No matter how close we feel to God, we can never make demands on Him.  Neither can we dictate how He will answer our prayers.  People often believe that prayers are unanswered because they are seeking God's stamp on their plan.  We should always filter prayer through the will of God, and accept the answer, even if it is no.  Verse three continues, Therefore his sisters sent unto him, saying, Lord, behold, he whom thou lovest is sick. The sisters sent for Jesus saying, him whom thou lovest is sick.  We need to go to God with our cares and concerns for the lost and dying world.  Often, they cannot or will not do it themselves.  Also, we need to lift up fellow Christians during their times of need.  We need to realize that God loves everyone, and we can rest assured that He will give to us everlasting life, if we only believe in Him.  We do not have to send for Him as He will always seek to draw us to Him.