Prayer for hope

Dear Lord, In times of grief, help me remember You are my Hope and You are right there with me. I pray You open my eyes and heart to others who are hurting and help me remind them of the Hope. Please give me boldness and compassion during this season to introduce the ultimate Hope to others in need of hope. In Jesus' Name, Amen.

He still holds My hand

Today's 'Our Daily Bread' was based out of Psalm 73. How often I question just like Asaph - "Why do they continue to prosper (in monetary wealth)?!" Oh how I loose sight of the grander picture. Sometimes it can be so easy for me to throw a pity party. And that's just it, 'sometimes' are the times that I take my eyes off of the real prize - my heavenly reward, which will be sufficient beyond words.

Joe Stowell expresses it well in a much needed reminder:

"We all face a variety of issues that threaten to make us stumble. For the psalmist Asaph, seeing the prosperity of the wicked caused him to question the goodness of God. But God squeezed his hand and reassured him that, given the judgment of God, the wicked do not really prosper. True prosperity, the psalmist discovered, was found in the fact that God was always with him: “You hold me by my right hand” (v.23). And just for good measure, God reminded him that He would also guide him through life and ultimately welcome him home to heaven (v.24). How good is that!

So, next time you stumble, remember that the powerful hand of God is holding your hand and walking you through life—all the way home!" — Joe Stowell

"Just keep swimmin, just keep swimmin.."

Kennedy is mobile, well, she has been for almost two weeks now. Though, she hasn't quite got the leg part down. She still gets around by 'army' crawling. She also has this 'move' where she appears to be swimming. What was appropriate, only for our amusement, is that she was on the linoleum floor in the kitchen, so her movements were much more fluid. She was awfully excited to be going nowhere, for that point in time anyway, it didn't last long. What's nice about her mobility is that she stays content much longer. I can only imagine how I would be if I was confined, watch out!

When my husband came downstairs to leave for work, he stopped by Clara and started singing, "She's got freckle on her, but I love her.." or, the more commonly punctuated version, "She's got freckles on her butt, I love her..." Clara kept saying, "No I don't," playfully. Dustin kept singing it, she was getting to the last straw...it hadn't broken yet, but you could tell it would only take a couple more times. After Dustin sang the lyrics again Clara proceeded with, "I don't have pickles on my butt!" I seriously need to start a journal of all the things that she says. It probably wouldn't take long to fill one up. :o)

Too often, I take for granted what God has given me, even my legs and definitely my mouth. Father, I pray that I would be a good steward with everything that I have, currently, and everything that You graciously choose to give me. Lord, I pray that I can effectively teach my children to be content with whatever they have; that we need to store up for ourselves things in heaven, where rust and moth do not destroy. Thank you Father for all the blessings you've bestowed upon me.

"My 23rd Psalm"

Another awesome email from 'Girlfriends in God.' It's not the entire email, but it's the part that struck me most.

My Psalm 23

Lord, You are my Shepherd
[You are my Identity]

I shall not want
[You are my Provision]

You make me lie down in green pastures
[You are my Rest]

You lead me beside the still waters
[You are my Replenishment]

You restore my soul
[You are my Healing]

You lead me in the paths of righteousness
[You are my Guide]

For Your name's sake
[You are my Purpose]

Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death
[You are my Strength]

I will fear no evil
[You are my Security]

For You are with me
[You are my Peace]

Your rod and your staff they comfort me.
[You are my Deliverer]

You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies
[You are my Hope]

You anoint my head with oil
[You are my Blessing]

My cup runs over
[You are my Abundance]

Surely, goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life
[You are my Promise]

And I will dwell in the house of the Lord
[You are my Destiny]

Forever
[You are my All in All!]

Let's Pray
Father, in the midst of preparing for the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays, I pray that I would constantly be reminded of the truth that it really is all about You. Give me the eyes to see those in need around me. Give me the heart to reach out to the walking wounded. Help me recognize and be thankful for the amazing journey this year has been and remember that You have been there every step of the way, through every valley and over every mountain. I give You praise! In Jesus' name, Amen.

To Survive or to Live, that is the question

My husband's birthday was yesterday and work gave him a visa gift card...that was very sweet! I don't think he's ever gotten something like that from his place of employment before. Well, to my surprise, kind of ;o), after Cora and Kelby went off to school this morning, Clara came to me at the door and said, "Mommy can I watch this?" She then proceeded to hand me WALL-E. WALL-E!!?? YAY!!!! I think it could go without any disagreement, that WALL-E is the family's favorite movie of all time! So, Clara and I are currently watching it.

The movie was available for purchase starting yesterday and they're selling it at Walmart for $14.97, so for any of you who haven't seen, it is so worth buying!!! And of course for those of you who have seen it....hurry, go buy it before it goes up to $19.97 or whatever they may raise the price to. Dustin was sweet enough to use his birthday money to go get it. Though, he didn't need any prompting....that's how good the movie is, to say that it's a family movie is an understatement. It is a classic, and will be a classic, I hope anyway, till the end of time.

Anyway, there is a line in the movie, that is now my all time favorite line of any movie because it speaks volumes with so little words. It's when the Pilot is arguing with "AUTO", the ships auto pilot 'robot', about going back to earth: "I don't want to survive, I want to live!" I"m sorry if I gave away a little too much to any of those who haven't seen the movie, but man. That line, hearing it for the second time, struck a chord in me, all the way down to my heart. I don't want to survive either! I want to live! Live for my LORD!!

So, will you just survive, or will you choose to live - for a greater purpose? A purpose that was given to you by your Maker, the maker of heaven and earth and all that is in them (Psalm 146:6).

Our Knight in Shining Armor

This is an excerpt from a email letter, Girlfriends in God, I get from Crosswalk.com. Our Prince has come, and He is taking us away to a beautiful castle!

As a child, I remember reading the story of Snow White and almost crying at the fate of one so lovely. As an adult, I read the story and realize it is more than a fairy tale: it is our story as well.

Satan was once a lovely prince. Ezekiel describes him as once being "full of wisdom and perfect in beauty" with every precious stone as his covering. He was the anointed cherub who was on the mountain of God (Ezekiel 28:12-14). But pride was his downfall and he wanted to be like God. As a result, God cast Satan from heaven with one-third of all the angels (Isaiah 14:12-23). After his downfall, he was no longer the "fairest of them all." Satan, like the cruel and wicked queen, then came after us with the poisoned fruit of disobedience.

But the story of Snow White didn't end with her being caught in the evil spell. One day, a handsome Prince rode through the forest on his white horse. When he saw Snow White deep in sleep, he fell in love with her and placed a kiss upon her lips. When he did, she sat up, blinked her eyes, and sprang to life. The prince scooped Snow White into his arms and took her off to his castle where they lived happily ever after.

Oh dear sisters, a handsome prince has come into our lives as well. His name is Jesus. Our prince has placed a kiss upon our lips, taken us in His strong arms, and lifted the evil curse. Now when we look into the mirror of God's word and ask, "Who's the fairest of them all?" God answers," You are, my child" -- for He sees the reflection of His Son in our eyes.

"As a child of God
Looks daily into the Word of God
And beholds intently the glory of God
As manifested in the Son of God,
She shall, by the will of God,
Be transformed into the image of God."
~Harry Reeder

Let's Pray
Dear Lord, Thank You for rescuing me from the forces of evil in this world and transferring me to the kingdom of light. Thank You for breaking the curse that was placed on all mankind due to the disobedience of Adam and Eve in the garden and awaking our dead spirits to newness of life. I praise You that nothing, absolutely nothing, can separate us from Your love.

In Jesus' name. Amen

Rain Check

Well, that lasted all of about two minutes. The paint is a white.... it actually says "extra white" on both containers. Good thing I looked before I started painting. Man, and I was really looking forward to giving the home a more "clean" look. I may just have to check into it. Though, I'm not for sure what the actual color is that is on our walls.... it's almost like an eggshell.... with a tint of pink in it... might want to be sure on that before I start putting spots of another color over it.

"A Painting We Will Go"

Well, I am going to attempt to touch up the walls. There are... I think, two 5 gallon drums of paint in our garage. I hope I can just do a "spot" treatment that won't look spotty. We shall see. Wish me luck! I may just take some pictures too while I'm at it ;oD.

Hearing Things?

The 'noises' that we "may or may not" hear are indicators letting us know that something needs our attention. Our car....our children....our spouse....our LORD. Notice how when we put off taking care of the 'noises/nudges' they don't go away or get better..? I pray that we heed to and take care of them before they "blow up" in our faces

Dear Lord, I need You to draw my attention to those little noises in my life. Sometimes I get so busy and forget to listen. And sometimes I hear them but I just ignore them because I don't want to deal with what's not right in front of me. Lord, I know those noises are little indicators of bigger problems lurking. Help me to hear them and respond before it's too late. In Jesus' Name, Amen.

A Simple "Fall Cleaning" Prayer

Dear Lord, I want to live free of the junk of sin. I want people to see YOU in me. Forgive me and help me to live according to your Word. In Jesus' Name, Amen.