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Say A Little Prayer

Yesterday was a day of “little prayers”. I found myself stopping throughout the day praying specifically for friends and family.

Prayers were lifted while I was sitting at my desk paying bills, in the kitchen washing dishes, driving to the store and out in the garage taking photographs. Some came early in the morning before I got out of bed and others were said as I was laying my head down on the pillow last night.

There’s always time to Say A Little Prayer.

“Always be joyful 17 and never stop praying. 18 Whatever happens, keep thanking God because of Jesus Christ. This is what God wants you to do.” I Thessalonians 5:16-18 CEV

I know some people think this way about prayer – well, nothing else works so we better pray. That’s a wrong idea of prayer. Our attitude should be – I will pray first so that things work out right.

“When you pray, don’t talk on and on as people do who don’t know God. They think God likes to hear long prayers. 8 Don’t be like them. Your Father knows what you need before you ask.” Matthew 6:7-8 CEV

When we pray we can ask confidently knowing that our Father already has our answer. Not a lot of words are necessary, we don’t need a quiet place with soft music playing – no, we just need an open heart and a willingness to talk to the Father.

It’s a great privilege to pray for others. Our spouse, our children, family and friends. Our nation and our leaders. Those who are being persecuted around the world, those who are sick.

Say A Little Prayer.

There are times when I go the the Father and say “Lord, I need someone to pray for me right now. I need to be strengthened, healed or encouraged”. The Father is so faithful to provide those prayers because the Holy Spirit prays for us.

“In certain ways we are weak, but the Spirit is here to help us. For example, when we don’t know what to pray for, the Spirit prays for us in ways that cannot be put into words. 27 All of our thoughts are known to God. He can understand what is in the mind of the Spirit, as the Spirit prays for God’s people.” Romans 8:26-27 CEV

Last night I woke a couple of times to pray and I was praying again before I got out of bed. There is never a bad time to pray. When I got up and was getting myself a cup of coffee, I was praying and these words came to mind.

I could hear Dionne Warwick singing this song from my high school days:

The moment I wake up
Before I put on my makeup (makeup)
I say a little prayer for you
And while combing my hair now
And wondering what dress to wear now (wear now)
I say a little prayer for you

Whenever folks come to mind it’s always a good time to Say A Little Prayer!

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God is Great!

The first thing I did this morning was look up and say “thank You”!

Before the sun rises my heart is already praising my heavenly Father for His love and His greatness. Before the first birds sing their morning song my heart is expressing my gratitude for His goodness. Before the coyotes break the silence my heart is spilling over with the joy of knowing I am loved unconditionally by the Father.

Great are You, Lord!

Some days can get us down; there is no denying we face challenges, some greater than others. However, there is nothing that is greater than our God!

“So David praised the Lord in front of all the people. He said, “Honor and thanks be to You, O Lord God of Israel our father, forever and ever. 11 O Lord, You have great power, shining-greatness and strength. Yes, everything in heaven and on earth belongs to You. You are the King, O Lord. And You are honored as head over all. 12 Both riches and honor come from You. You rule over all. Power and strength are in Your hand. The power is in Your hand to make great and to give strength to all. 13 So now, our God, we thank You. We praise Your great and honored name.” I Chronicles 29:10-13 NLV

The picture I used in this morning’s blog is one I took on Christmas Eve morning while we were camping. I think the reason I enjoy camping as much as I do is because it reminds me of the greatness and goodness of the One who tells me His love is everlasting. The grandeur of the landscape; the majestic colors of the sky; the intricate design of the flowers and the trees all confirm His love for me.

“That is why I tell you not to worry about everyday life—whether you have enough food and drink, or enough clothes to wear. Isn’t life more than food, and your body more than clothing? 26 Look at the birds. They don’t plant or harvest or store food in barns, for your heavenly Father feeds them. And aren’t you far more valuable to him than they are?” Matthew 6:25-26 NLT

Sunday morning we sang a song during our on-line church service that truly describes my heart’s praise: Great Are You Lord by Jason David Ingram, David Leonard, Leslie Jordan

You give life, You are love
You bring light to the darkness
You give hope, You restore
Every heart that is broken
And great are You, Lord

It’s Your breath in our lungs
So we pour out our praise
We pour out our praise
It’s Your breath in our lungs
So we pour out our praise to You only

Start the day right. Join with me in praising the Father for His greatness. There is no greater love than His!

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Peace Like A River

As I sat here this moring one word came to mind – Peace.

It’s the start of a new month, a new week, a new day and my heart is wrapped in a warm blanket of God’s peace!

The image I used this morning is a picture I took years ago near our home in Montana. The air was still and when we quieted our voices all we could hear was the sound of the river rolling over the rocks and splashing the snow covered banks.

Peace!

Peace doesn’t mean the absence of adverse circumstances. I can think of two examples from the Bible where people were in dire straights but they were at peace.

Daniel had been condemned to the lions’ den. His crime was prayer. His enemies were committed to having him destroyed and since they could find nothing else to accuse him on, they chose his faith in God and his commitment to prayer.

“The next morning, King Darius got up just as it was getting light and ran to the lions’ den. 20 He was very worried. When he got to the lions’ den, he called to Daniel. He said, “Daniel, servant of the living God, has your God been able to save you from the lions? You always serve your God.”

21 Daniel answered, “King, live forever! 22 My God sent his angel to save me. The angel closed the lions’ mouths. The lions have not hurt me because my God knows I am innocent. I never did anything wrong to you, King.” Daniel 6:19-22 ERV

Peter is the second example that came to mind. There was great persecution of those who followed Jesus and preached about His resurrection. The leaders of the day were out to stop this message, even if it meant killing the messengers. One of the apostles had already been killed and now Peter had been arrested and imprisoned. He was to be the next to die.

“The night before Peter was to be put on trial, he was asleep and bound by two chains. A soldier was guarding him on each side, and two other soldiers were guarding the entrance to the jail. 7 Suddenly an angel from the Lord appeared, and light flashed around in the cell. The angel poked Peter in the side and woke him up. Then he said, “Quick! Get up!”

The chains fell off his hands, 8 and the angel said, “Get dressed and put on your sandals.” Peter did what he was told. Then the angel said, “Now put on your coat and follow me.” Acts:12:6-8 CEV

It was a heaven sent jail break. What I find so interesting about this story is that Peter, facing death, was in such a deep sleep that the angel had to poke him to wake him up. He was at peace.

When we focus our thoughts and attentions on God and His love; His provision and His strength, we find peace.

“You will keep the man in perfect peace whose mind is kept on You, because he trusts in You. 4 Trust in the Lord forever. For the Lord God is a Rock that lasts forever.” Isaiah 26:3-4 NLV

Start your day with your mind stayed, focused, on the Lord. Let His peace flow through your heart like a river. Let it carry away the anxieties of life and bring refreshing to your mind.

Trust in the Lord and you will have peace!

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Imperfect But Loved

I don’t know if you have realized it or not but the Bible is filled with imperfect people. Ordinary people just like you and I.

There are men who lie, women who are jealous, the unfaithful and disloyal. The cheats and scoundrels. The fearful and the timid. The rebellious and the braggarts. We have their stories as a guide of what not to do but also as an encouragement.

An encouragement of our Father’s unconditional, unfailing love!

I’ve been reading the story of Jacob, Abraham’s grandson. He was a manipulative, devious man. He stole his brother’s birthright, the inheritance for being the oldest child and the blessing that went with it. He deceived his father and cheated his brother.

But God blessed him and through his descendants the nation of Israel was blessed.

“The Lord was standing beside the ladder and said: ‘I am the Lord God who was worshiped by Abraham and Isaac. I will give to you and your family the land on which you are now sleeping. 14 Your descendants will spread over the earth in all directions and will become as numerous as the specks of dust. Your family will be a blessing to all people.  15 Wherever you go, I will watch over you, then later I will bring you back to this land. I won’t leave you—I will do all I have promised.’ 16 Jacob woke up suddenly and thought, ‘The Lord is in this place, and I didn’t even know it.'” Genesis 28:13-16 CEV

On the night that Jesus was arrested He was celebrating the Passover with his twelve disciples. He knew two of these men were going to betray Him that evening. Judas, a paid informant, told the religious leaders of Jesus’ location which led to his arrest, trial and crucifixion. Peter also betrayed Jesus that night, denying his association with Jesus three times during the course of the evening.

Judas was so remorseful that he killed himself. It’s very sad that he died not realizing that Jesus’ death was for the forgiveness of all sin, including his. Peter, on the othe hand, had an encounter of forgiveness with Jesus after His resurrection and went on to be instrumental in evangelizing the world with the message of God’s unconditional love and forgiveness.

“Peter and the apostles replied: We don’t obey people. We obey God. 30 You killed Jesus by nailing him to a cross. But the God our ancestors worshiped raised him to life 31 and made him our Leader and Savior. Then God gave him a place at his right side, so that the people of Israel would turn back to him and be forgiven. 32 We are here to tell you about all this, and so is the Holy Spirit, who is God’s gift to everyone who obeys God.” Acts 5:29-32 CEV

Imperfect people are all God has. Some seem worse than others but we all fail to measure up. That’s why Jesus died – He brought us forgiveness and a relationship of love and peace with the Father. If we were perfect we would have no need for a Saviour, no need for unconditional love.

“All of us have sinned and fallen short of God’s glory. 24 But God treats us much better than we deserve, and because of Christ Jesus, he freely accepts us and sets us free from our sins.” Romans 3:23-24 CEV

Isn’t is good to know that no matter our failures or imperfections God chooses to love us unconditionally!

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Spoiler Alert

In yesterday’s blog we looked at the practical teaching of joy. This morning I was reminded of a time when an every day situation had me so frustrated that I wanted to scream. The Lord taught me a valuable lesson through it.

“Catch the foxes for us— the little foxes that spoil the vineyard. Our vineyard is now in bloom.” Song of Solomon 2:15 CEV

King Solomon said that we are to catch little foxes because they spoil our fruit. In this case, the fruit is joy. I kept running into little foxes on this particular day.

I had just gotten a new computer. My old computer had been around for the last 4-5 years. I knew it inside and out, literally. But it was old and running so slow. I asked our son-in-law to recommend a newer and better computer that would meet my needs and have a relatively easy learning curve for both Dave and I.

I made a list of everything I needed to move from one computer to the other and methodically went about my task. I felt pretty accomplished for a non-computer tech type person. Checking off each item as I completed them. Yes, this was going smoothly until one of those little foxes showed up!

It came in the form of a command “restart to activate new software” and there was a glitch. A phone call in the midst of my concentration proved to be another little fox, a fox of distraction. Launch again, a missing element, another little fox! Frustration mounted…

I’ve learned to recognize the “big” things in my life that seek to get me off course in my relationship with the Lord but more often than not, I get tripped up by these little foxes.

It was certainly time to pray.

I had done that when I started, asking for wisdom and thanking the Father for guiding me through this process but somewhere along the way, I had allowed the frustration to override my peace.

Then I heard these words in my mind, “in my presence is fullness of joy”.

“I don’t feel very joyful right now Father.” “Then you’re not in My presence”. It was a short conversation between the Father and I and He was right.

I was wrapped up in my own little world and I’d forgotten to lean on Him. If God, the Father, is concerned with a small thing like setting up a new computer, let me assure you that the weightier matters of life are certainly within His provision as well.

“LORD, you give me all that I need. You support me. You give me my share. 6 My share is wonderful. My inheritance is very beautiful…8 I always remember that the LORD is with me. He is here, close by my side, so nothing can defeat me. 9 So my heart and soul will be very happy. Even my body will live in safety..11 You will teach me the right way to live. Just being with you will bring complete happiness*. Being at your right side will make me happy forever.” Psalm 16:5-11 ERV *(fullness of joy, KJV)

What little foxes are spoiling your vineyard? Capture them and sit in the Father’s presence. There you will find FULLNESS OF JOY!“

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Smile & Feel Better

Today’s blog is amazingly practical.

Late yesterday Dave and I were watching a program on television that was dealing with some real life, very emotional issues that face teenagers. They were completely without hope and it left both of us sad and downcast.

I knew I couldn’t let this premeate our evening or we’d both go to bed feeling depressed. I asked him to find something funny we could watch, “I need something to make me laugh”. He switched to YouTube and there we found old clips of Tim Conway and Harvey Korman. We watched a few of those and then Dave found an old Abbott & Costello movie – more laughter.

“A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a broken spirit saps a person’s strength.” Proverbs 17:22 NLT

“Happiness makes you smile; sorrow can crush you.” Proverbs 15:13 CEV

We went to bed last night with a smile on our faces and our spirits were lifted.

Somedays it’s hard to be joyful. I understand that completely but we must take these verses on joy and happiness for what they are – instructions from the Lord. He wants us to have a glad heart, He wants us to be “care free” and roll all our worries over on Him. When we do He promises to replace our worries with His strength.

“Ezra said to them, “Go, eat and drink what you enjoy, and give some to him who has nothing ready. For this day is holy to our Lord. Do not be sad for the joy of the Lord is your strength.” Nehemiah 8:10 NLV

“Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you.” I Peter 5:7 NLV

A couple of weeks ago I had to go into the pharmacy to pick up a prescription for my mother. As I was standing in line waiting for the pharmacist the woman at the counter turned and looked at me. Behind her mask, I saw that her eyes were filled with sadness. She turned back and then turned around one more time, we made eye contact and I gave her my biggest smile, behind my mask. She said to me “I can tell you are smiling. Your eyes are twinkling. Thank you I needed that”. I said a simple “God bless you” and our encounter was over.

Lord, I want you to use me and all who read this to bring joy to a hurting world. We have a message to proclaim “Joy to the world, the Lord has come”!

“The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is upon me, for the Lord has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to comfort the brokenhearted and to proclaim that captives will be released and prisoners will be freed… 3 To all who mourn in Israel, he will give a crown of beauty for ashes, a joyous blessing instead of mourning, festive praise instead of despair.” Isaiah 61:1-3 NLT

The words above were written about Jesus. This is why He came – He came to bring God’s favor (His life) to the earth.

The next time you are feeling down ask the Lord to fill your heart with joy. He will! With joy will come strength and with His strength we can do all things!

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Be Encouraged

There are so many influences that we encounter that are discouraging and disheartening but God’s word is contrary to that. In life’s darkest moments He offers us encouragment and consolation.

The word encourage is used 58 times in the New Living Translation of the New Testament. Most of these references are in the letters Paul wrote to Christians around the world.

“And you know that we treated each of you as a father treats his own children. 12 We pleaded with you, encouraged you, and urged you to live your lives in a way that God would consider worthy. For he called you to share in his Kingdom and glory. 13 Therefore, we never stop thanking God that when you received his message from us, you didn’t think of our words as mere human ideas. You accepted what we said as the very word of God—which, of course, it is. And this word continues to work in you who believe.” I Thessalonians 2:11-13 NLT

Paul was a man who didn’t just talk the talk but walked the walk. He knew what is was like to face hard times; he had been arrested, beaten, ship wrecked, run out of town and under house arrest. Yet his message remained the same.

“Dear brothers and sisters, I close my letter with these last words: Be joyful. Grow to maturity. Encourage each other. Live in harmony and peace. Then the God of love and peace will be with you.” II Corinthians 13:11 NLT

He was confident that the new life we receive in Christ is a life of strength, joy, power and victory. He was compelled to share that message everywhere he went. It was his life goal, having turned from persecuting the Christians, to bring the message of restored relationship through Christ Jesus to the world.

“And all of this is a gift from God, who brought us back to himself through Christ. And God has given us this task of reconciling people to him. 19 For God was in Christ, reconciling the world to himself, no longer counting people’s sins against them. And he gave us this wonderful message of reconciliation.” II Corinthians 5:18-29 NLT

Our sins are no longer counted against us. God the Father, in his great love, adopted us to be His very own. His desire is to have a deep and enduring relationship with each of us. He’s not out to destroy our lives but to bring meaning, hope, joy and fulfillment to them.

“For I know that nothing can keep us from the love of God. Death cannot! Life cannot! Angels cannot! Leaders cannot! Any other power cannot! Hard things now or in the future cannot! 39 The world above or the world below cannot! Any other living thing cannot keep us away from the love of God which is ours through Christ Jesus our Lord.” Romans 8:37-39 NLT

NOTHING can separate us from God’s love! Nothing.

The Father even loves us when we are rebellious. Remember the father of the prodigal son – He watched for him to return everyday and embraced him when he did. That’s the way our Father feels about us.

I hope this encourages you and I pray that you will be an encouragement to someone also.

“So encourage each other and build each other up, just as you are already doing.” I Thessalonians 5:11 NLT

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Singing in the Storm

Imagine with me that you and your closest friend had been arrested. Before you are taken to your cell you were beaten and then chained in a dungeon. You know you are innocent of any crime and still here you are!

What will you do next? Many of us would probably curl up in a corner and bemoan our fate. Life is unfair! Fear would seep in and probably cover us like a blanket. Hope would be gone BUT not if we had our hope anchored to God’s love and His promises. (we read about being anchored yesterday)

This is a real life story so let’s look at what these two friends did.

“After they had been badly beaten, they were put in jail, and the jailer was told to guard them carefully. 24 The jailer did as he was told. He put them deep inside the jail and chained their feet to heavy blocks of wood.

25 About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing praises to God, while the other prisoners listened. 26 Suddenly a strong earthquake shook the jail to its foundations. The doors opened, and the chains fell from all the prisoners.” Acts 16:23-26 CEV

Paul and Silas sang at midnight!

They prayed and they sang. Maybe they remembered the words from Psalm 23:

“You prepare a feast for me in the presence of my enemies. You honor me by anointing my head with oil. My cup overflows with blessings.” Vs 5 NLT

Maybe they thought of Daniel being thrown to the lions or of those three Hebrews would were condemned to the fiery furnance. Whatever their thoughts, they were focused on the Lord and they were singing.

One of the songs we sang at on-line church on Sunday was running through my mind as I got up this morning. Here’s just a few of the lyrics of Raise A Hallelujah by Bethel Music:

I raise a hallelujah, in the presence of my enemies
I raise a hallelujah, louder than the unbelief
I raise a hallelujah, my weapon is a melody
I raise a hallelujah, heaven comes to fight for me


I’m gonna sing, in the middle of the storm
Louder and louder, you’re gonna hear my praises roar
Up from the ashes, hope will arise
Death is defeated, the King is alive!

No situation or circumstance is hopeless when we know the One who opens prison doors and sets the captives free. No situation can defeat us when our faith is established in Jesus. Our Father, the God of heaven, comes to our cry.

“Loving God means obeying his commands. And God’s commands are not too hard for us, 4 because everyone who is a child of God has the power to win against the world. 5 It is our faith that has won the victory against the world. So who wins against the world? Only those who believe that Jesus is the Son of God.” I John 5:3-5 CEV

If you’re in the middle of a storm right now, warm up those vocal chords and get ready to sing. Anchor your hope in Christ – the King is Alive!!

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Anchored in Life

Dave and I like to watch sailing shows; there are several on YouTube where couples and families have left the sticks and bricks behind and taken to the water. They have some amazing adventures as they circumnavigate the globe.

Since the videos are never more than twenty to thirty minutes long most of the footage they show is of the “fun stuff”. Sailing in beautiful waters, meeting interesting island natives, fishing from the back deck, snorkeling – all of these are an enticement to this carefree lifestyle.

It’s not all fun and games. There’s a lot of work that must be done to keep things ship-shape. This last week two of the sailing couples each focused on the work that has to be done to keep their boats in good repair.

I was particularly interested when they showed the anchor and the chain that secures it. Sailing is a continual cycle of dropping anchor, retrieving it and moving on to the next anchorage. A good anchor is a must.

Anchors are used in both calm and rough seas. It’s important to be well anchored. If not, the boat will drift and move off course. I found that to be true with our small fishing boat. If we weren’t using our trolling motor to slowly move around an inlet we dropped anchor to keep us from drifting too close to the shoreline or getting caught up in a submerged tree or hitting a log.

We all need a good anchor. It’s an essential in life.

“God cannot tell lies! And so his promises and vows are two things that can never be changed. We have run to God for safety. Now his promises should greatly encourage us to take hold of the hope that is right in front of us. 19 This hope is like a firm and steady anchor for our souls.” Hebrews 6:18-19 CEV

Hope in God’s promises is our anchor, not just when things are rough and stormy but also when life is calm and smooth. We place our confidence, our hope, in the Father’s promises and they hold us secure. It’s easy to drift off course and lose our bearings without this anchor.

“Yet now he has reconciled you to himself through the death of Christ in his physical body. As a result, he has brought you into his own presence, and you are holy and blameless as you stand before him without a single fault. 23 But you must continue to believe this truth and stand firmly in it. Don’t drift away from the assurance you received when you heard the Good News.” Colossians 1:22-23 NLT

Let me encourage you to drop anchor. Make sure you are securely attached to the solid rock of God’s word. It will keep you from drifting – it will fill you with hope!

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Good Morning

Most mornings I have no problem at all rising early. It’s been my way of life for over thirty years. For me, sleeping in is not getting up until after 6 am. But this morning is different.

I woke up but the idea of getting up wasn’t a pleasant thought. Have you ever had a morning like that?

The coffee has just finished brewing and my first cup is about half gone. My heart is focused and there is a prayer on my lips. “Lord, let me use this day to honor You. I need Your strength and wisdom for this day. I’m not sure what You have planned for me today but I know it’s good because You always want the best for me. I love you Father, I love you Jesus, I love you Holy Spirit. Thank you for being all I need. In Jesus name.”

Getting up early to spend time with the Lord is never a waste of time.

Give Me Jesus by Fernando Ortega

In the morning, when I rise
In the morning, when I rise
In the morning, when I rise, give me Jesus

Give me Jesus
Give me Jesus
You can have all this world
But give me Jesus

In the quiet I find it easier to hear the Father speaking to my heart. There are no text messages to interrupt, no emails requiring answers and no distractions to sidetrack me.

“Be proud of his holy name.  You followers of the Lord, be happy! 4 Depend on the Lord for strength. Always go to him for help. 5 Remember the amazing things he has done.  Remember his miracles and his fair decisions.” Psalm 105:3-5 ERV

I depend on the Lord for my strength. He’s always there to help!

I’m praying for those of you who woke early and are having a hard time getting started this morning. I’m praying that you are strengthened for the day; energized for the opportunities ahead. We don’t know what appointments God has for us today. Does someone need encouragment – a kind word, help with a task? Maybe one of our family need some one-on-one time to express their heart. Is the Father putting someone on your heart who needs prayer for healing, for peace, for a miracle? It’s these kind of things that I hear the Father speaking to my heart in the early morning.

Second cup of coffee is almost gone and I am excited to see what the day has in store.

“I say this because I know the plans that I have for you.” This message is from the Lord. “I have good plans for you. I don’t plan to hurt you. I plan to give you hope and a good future. 12 Then you will call my name. You will come to me and pray to me, and I will listen to you. 13 You will search for me, and when you search for me with all your heart, you will find me.” Jeremiah 29:11-13 ERV

I can’t wait to see what good plan the Father has for me and He has one for you too!

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