Thirty- three

Romans 8: 26
We do not know how to pray as we should. But the Spirit himself speaks to God for us, even begs God for us with deep feelings that words cannot explain.

There are times when tragedy strikes our lives and we shut down. I did when my daughter moved in with her dad. I couldn’t see what the future held for us since we had a terrible confrontation and hurt each other very bad. I had to just let go. For a mother to let go of a child, it is an incredible thing. I had to adjust to not seeing her everyday and knowing that she was ok.

I had to put my pain before God to help heal us. I had to pray for her dad and his circumstances and his family, because that is where my child is. I am still praying for us, all of us. Some things have healed and it is a work in progress I am thankful for the little things and when the big things happen I am overjoyed.

We all can have some devastating news or circumstance happen to us where we feel despair. Our feelings are real and are not to be ignored. When we have these feelings we are to bring them to God.
Just hand them over to God in prayer. Let Him know what is going on and what you need. It may not happen right away, but bring God into it right away and He can begin to work out what will be best.

My friend Stacie S. father, David H. was diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumor several months ago. His doctor numbered his days left on Earth to months. Mr. H is a godly Christian man. He was able to get treatment. Many many people were praying for him; his family, all his church family, and his friends, including me. Today he went for a MRI and the tumor was gone!!!

We are all praising God for being the great physician, who removed the tumor that could not be removed with surgery. God is a healing God.

Praise God!

If you are not praying, I would like to encourage you to start. It doesn’t have to be long, or anything fancy, God sometimes is content to know you want to say, “hello.” When these life changing circumstances happen, cry out to God. Let Him know your heart. When these things are beyond our control or understanding we can say a prayer like this,

“Lord I am taking this imaginary hammer and nailing my problem to the cross, because I can’t handle it, I’m hurt and tired, and I can’t stop crying. I am giving it over to you. WHATEVER happens – WHATEVER happens in this circumstance, please give me a peace about it. God you are mighty, merciful and loving, I surrender to your will in this situation.” Amen

God can make the impossible possible and when He does- Praise Him!

“To God be the glory for great things he hath done!”

My other prayer that I committed a week ago- where I was going to start praying for something I had not been praying for - for selfish reasons- well, it was answered. 

My husband has been talking non stop about going back to the Philippines.  I'm sick of hearing about it, it is part of the reason I moved out of the house.  He came home with relationships that had a hand in our relationship pulling apart and brought in lies and anger and hostility in a marriage that was already drifting.  He is still committed to these relationships and told me he is going back as soon as he gets his credit card paid off. 

I prayed that he could go and soon, because it is causing me great unrest about how committed he is to our marriage.  I am at such odds that neither of us know if we should be married or not. 

I feel like if he goes back, it will be the end of our marriage- it will only continue to hurt us.  He doesn't see it that way.  He sees it as - life is short and he should live it the way he wants and enjoy it to the fullest doing whatever makes him happy. I'm all for him being happy, but if he is not happy with me or being married, then we need to take the next step.  There are a lot of reasons we are living apart. I admit my depression from my daughter moving out was a big part of us drifting apart.  

So along with that prayer that I prayed- he got awarded a large contract at work and in a few months- he will have his credit card paid off and I see him going directly to the airline ticket office, without regard to how it will affect our marriage. 

I'm really happy they got the large contract at his work. I praise God because it means that they will make it though these tough recession times and keep the business open.

God does answer prayers!

  I will still be in prayer about God letting us know if we should be married or not. 


Grace and peace to you from God our father.

Thirty-two

Psalm 25:6
Remember, O Lord, your tender mercies and your lovingkindnesses, for they are from old.

I think a lot about my future and wonder what's going to happen next. I could worry about it and think aboutit every minute, but I can't do that. I am going to just let God be in control of it.

Last week I had a roller coaster of a week emotional highs and lows and dealt with things in all the wrong way.

This week when things feel like they are spinning out of control, I am not going to the person in front of me and bawling like a child that just dropped their ice cream, I am going to save it for when I am alone and talking with God. God is the one I need to cry out to when things are out of my control and hand it all over to Him.

God is the one I need to tell that I am weak. God is the one I need to tell that everything is out of control, and let him reach down to me as I reach up to Him. I'm going to let God guide me during this hectic time of my life and let him swing me up into his arms and just love me.

I'll just love Him back and thank him for every blessing I am given.

I am having the hardest time letting go and letting God.

These trials seem like they will just keep testing me and I will have to keep focused on God.

I hope you will call upon God when you have needs, He wants us to rely on him to sustain us and change us. Today I felt loved and it was nice.
Extraordinary compared to last week.

May mercy and Grace be with you from God our father.

Thirty-one

Each day I invite God to go with me through out my day when I pray in the mornings. I want to watch for God to be with me and bring a blessing into my life not just for me specifically but a blessing that I can witness God in my day.
It does not have to be anything incredible, just any thing that I used to take for granted, I do not want to take it for granted anymore. Inviting God into my day makes me look for Him at work in my life.

When today did I experience God?

With every breath I took, every smile I had and all the small sprinkles of joy I was given.
Is it that simple? Yes, it is that simple to experience God everyday.

At lunch I was able to help my husband with a project, I got to see Baby Girl at dance (and I even watched for a few minutes!) and I was blessed with food to eat and water to drink. I saw a beautiful sunset and I have a thankful heart as I end this day.

I have a full day again tomorrow and I will invite God to be with me again tomorrow.

Ask for God to join you in your day too.

I have a long prayer list. I am still praying for that one thing and expecting to experience God to have it happen for the person I am praying for so that I can share my joy of God’s glory.

Joel 2:26
You will have plenty to eat, until you are full, and you will praise the name of the Lord your God, who has worked wonders for you;

What wonder has God accomplished in your life?

Thirty

Galatians 5:22-26
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit, Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other.

 I joined LOGOS Baptist Church today. Pastor Anderson said something to me, he said, “I am glad we are going to be part of your journey.” I remembered in the Catholic Church the priest would say when you took communion, “Peace be with you.” And you would say back, “Peace also be with you.” I wanted to say something like that to Pastor Anderson, but I only got out a, “thank you.”

The verse today was chosen because Pastor Anderson spoke about bearing fruit. God calls us as Christians to bear fruit.

John 15:16
You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit- fruit that will last. Then the Father will give you whatever you ask in my name.


What kind of fruit? Lemons, pears, oranges, apples?
No, the fruit of the spirit is “is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control”

Lord, is my prayer, make me a fruit bearer, for Jesus Christ.
Amen.

Twenty-nine

Love

Psalm 33:20-22

We wait in hope for the Lord:
he is our hope and our shield.
In him our hearts rejoice,
for we trust in his holy name.
May your unfailing love rest upon us, O Lord
even as we put our hope in you.

My tomorrows are going to be unlike any yesterday I have ever known.

Extraordinary.

Twenty -eight

Today’s extraordinary day was filled with a lot of
BIG questions,
BIG emotions, and
BIG hair dye and
BIG dreams.

I started the day with questions.
By lunch I voiced my questions.
Emotions were revealed, and healing is necessary.
Baby girl got chosen for Honor society (God is blessing her!) As a reward she got her hair dyed, blonde & red. She loved it. It took 4 long hours!
My dad came to visit and we talked about projected sales in our business.

All in all, my whole day focused on dreams or aspirations for my tomorrows.

I asked my spouse what his aspirations were for our marriage, I told him mine.

I submitted an article to the local paper, which I aspire to be published in a lot in the future.

Baby Girl is focusing on her grades so her aspirations of success will be reached.

Our Orb Edge business is an aspiration for building a lot of wonderful things.

I ended my day thinking about all the hope there is in my life for my future.

I know that God wants good things for me and today made me realize that the people in my life are amazing and they bless me in such a great way.
I need some focus and direction. Today made me look at the people in my life and how we all can lift each other up.

I felt really needy when I got up this morning.
As my day unfolded I gave more than I received and it was just what I needed.
I’m glad for the way that God came into my day and blessed me.
I have a thankful heart instead of a broken heart.

Three truths about God:
1. God owns everything.
2. God expects me to use my talent.
3. God promises to meet the needs of his faithful.

Psalm 116: 17-19
I will sacrifice a thank offering to you and call on the name of the Lord. I will fulfill my vows to the Lord in the presence of all his people, in the courts of the house of the Lord- in your midst, O Jerusalem.
Praise the Lord.

Thank you God for this extraordinary day.

Amen.

Twenty-Seven

In these daily devotionals writing about myself is hard. I think of myself as a guarded person but that is one of the things I would like to change about myself. I tend to keep things to myself, largely my emotions. I want to be more open, honest and expressive in not just these devotionals but in my everyday life.
I know that when I shut people out, they shut me out too. I wrote a devotional the other day expressing that I would like to have characteristics that God wants me to have.

Dependable
Steadfast
Merciful
Faithful
Loving
Genuine
Extraordinary

When you get serious about God, the Devil takes notice. Monday I completely forgot to take my daughter to dance. I did not have one thought about it until about 9 PM then it was too late.
Dependable? Gotta work on that!
She did go to dance. She doesn’t live with me, so neither of us communicated and so I think the devil was at work and didn’t even give her the urge to call me to say, Hey where are you?
I felt so bad I sent a text apologizing and she forgave me. I want to be someone dependable, especially for my daughter.
Am I steadfast?
I have no schedule so I live in the moment. Steadfast is something I need to work on.
Am I merciful?
I am quick to anger and that makes me have to apologize sometimes and I realize that make me at the other person’s mercy. Merciful is something I need to work on.
Am I faithful?
I would like to think that I am. I am worthy of trust, loyal, and devoted. I am proving this to God by writing this daily devotional.
Am I loving?
I have been hurt so I am a little reserved when it comes to being loving. I have to work on it.
Am I genuine?
I am. What you see in my actions and personality are genuine. I am myself.
Am I extraordinary?
I think I will be with God and with God’s direction.
I could say that about all these characteristics. Some of these characteristics come naturally, some are and will always be a work in progress.

Psalm 37:23-24
23 If the LORD delights in a man's way,
he makes his steps firm;
24 though he stumble, he will not fall,
for the LORD upholds him with his hand.