Dear Lord

 

Dear Lord, I thank you for this day. 

I thank You for my being able to see and to hear this morning. I'm blessed because You are a forgiving God and an understanding God. You have done so much for me and You keep on blessing me. Forgive me this day for everything I have done, said or thought that was not pleasing to you. I ask now for Your forgiveness.

Please keep me safe from all danger and harm. Help me to start this day with a new attitude and plenty of gratitude. Let me make the best of each and every day to clear my mind so that I can hear from You.

Please broaden my mind that I can accept all things.

Let me not whine and whimper over things I have no control over. Let me continue to see sin through God's eyes and acknowledge it as evil. And when I sin, let me repent, and confess with my mouth my wrongdoing, and receive the forgiveness of God.

And when this world closes in on me, let me remember Jesus' example -- to slip away and find a quiet place to pray. It's the best response when I'm pushed beyond my limits. I know that when I can't pray, You listen to my heart. Continue to use me to do Your will.

Continue to bless me that I may be a blessing to others. Keep me strong that I may help the weak. Keep me uplifted that I may have words of encouragement for others. I pray for those who are lost and can't find their way. I pray for those who are misjudged and misunderstood. I pray for those who don't know You intimately. I pray for those who are afraid to share their faith and love of you with others. I pray for those who don't believe. But I thank you that I believe.

I believe that God changes people and God changes things. I pray for all my sisters and brothers. For each and every family member in their households. I pray for peace, love and joy in their homes. I pray that they are out of debt, both materially and spiritually, and all their needs are met through you.

I pray that every eye that reads this knows there is no problem, circumstance, or situation greater than God. Every battle is in Your hands for You to fight. I pray that these words be received into the hearts of every eye that sees them and every mouth that confesses them willingly.

This is my prayer.

In Jesus' Name, Amen.

Simple Formula

 

A Baby's Prayer Kathy Troccoli

I can hear her talking with a friend
I think it's all about me
Oh, how she can't have a baby now
My mommy doesn't see

That I feel her breathe, I know her voice
Her blood, it flows through my heart
God you know my greatest wish is that
We'd never be apart

But if I should die before I wake
I pray her soul you'll keep
Forgive her Lord, she doesn't know
That you gave life to me

Do I really have to say goodbye
Don't want this time to be through
Oh please tell her that I love her Lord
And that you love her too

'Cause if I should die before I wake
I pray her soul you'll keep
Forgive her Lord, she doesn't know
That you gave life to me

On the days when she may think of me
Please comfort her with the truth
That the angels hold me safe and sound
'Cause I'm in Heaven with you
I'm in Heaven with you

Andrea Bocelli, Matteo Bocelli - Fall On Me

A beautiful song between parent and child.

I thought sooner or later,
The lights up above
Would come down in circles
And guide me to love
But I don't know what's right for me,
I cannot see straight.
I've been here too long
And I don't want to wait for it

Fly like a cannonball
Straight to my soul,
Tear me to pieces
And make me feel whole
I'm willing to fight for it,
And carry this weight
But with every step
I keep questioning what is true

Fall on me, with open arms
Fall on me, from where you are
With all your light

A light will illuminate you soon
Follow it always; it'll know how to guide you
Don't give up,
Be careful not to lose yourself
And your past will make sense to you
I'd like you to believe in yourself, but yes
In every step you move down here
It's an infinite journey
I'll smile if in this fleeing time, you take me with you

Fall on me, Listen to me
Fall on me, Hug me
Fall on me, if you want

I close my eyes
And I'm seeing you everywhere
I step outside,
It's like I'm breathing you in the air
I can feel you're there

Fall on me, Listen to me
Fall on me, Hug me
Fall on me, If you want

The Will of God

 'The will of God will never take you where the Grace of God will not protect you"

As I Sit In Heaven

 

Letting Go

 

LETTING GO

 To let go doesn't mean to stop carrying your child’s load, it just means you can't do it for them.

 To let go is not to be in the middle arranging the outcomes, but to allow them to effect their own outcomes.

 To let go is not to deny, but to accept.

 To let go is not to nag, scold, or argue, but to search out our own shortcomings and to correct them.

 To let go is not to cut yourself off, it's the realization that you don't control them.

 To let go is not to enable, but to allow learning from natural consequences.

 To let go is to admit our powerlessness, which means the outcome is not in our hands.

 To let go is not to try and change or blame them, but only change ourselves.

 To let go is not to care for them, but to care about them, not to fix, but be supportive, not to judge but to allow them to be a human being.

 To let go is not to adjust our children to our desires, but to take each day as it comes and cherish each moment.

 To let go is not to criticize and regulate them, but to give them wings to become what they dream they can be.

 To let go is not to regret the past, but to grow in love together and live for the future.

 To let go is to fear less and love more.

 As parents …..To let go .... is to let God!

I Promise

 I can't promise to be here for the rest of your life, but I can promise to love you for the rest of mine. 

I Can Only Hope

 "One lives to hope they become a good memory"

The very breath of God

 

 

She Was Beautiful

 

Suzanne Reynolds
 

SHE WAS BEAUTIFUL....
.... but she didn't know what that meant.
When she was a little girl they told her she was beautiful
but it had no meaning in her world of bicycles and pigtails
and adventures in make-believe.

Later, she hoped she was beautiful  as boys started taking notice
of her friends and phones rang for Saturday night dates.
She felt beautiful on her wedding day,
hopeful with her new life partner by her side

but, later,  when her children called  her beautiful,
she was often exhausted,  her hair messily tied back,
no make up, wide in the waist where it used to be narrow;
she just couldn't take it in.

Over the years, as she tried, in fits and starts, to look beautiful,
she found other things  to take priority, like bills and meals,
as she and her life partner worked hard to make a family,
to make ends meet,to make children into adults,
to make a life.

Now, she sat. Alone.
Her children grown, her partner flown,
and she couldn't remember the last time she was called beautiful.

But she was.
It was in every line on her face, in the strength of her arthritic hands,
the ampleness that had a million hugs imprinted
on its very skin, and in the jiggly thighs and
thickened ankles that had run her race for her.
She had lived her life with a loving and generous heart,
had wrapped her arms around so many to give them comfort and peace.

Her ears had  heard both terrible news
and lovely songs, and her eyes
had brimmed with, oh, so many tears, they were now bright even as they dimmed.

She had lived and she was.

And because she was,
she was made beautiful.
~ Suzanne Reynolds, © 2019

Michael W. Smith - There She Stands 9-11-01 Never Forget

Moses' Rod

“Remember Moses’ Rod….

There are no little people, there are no little places”. 

Courageous Persecution

“Something is wrong when our lives make sense to unbelievers.” - Francis Chan

Transformation

Proverbs 3:5-6

In other words...."When I drive my bus I go in the ditch.
When God drives it’s a smooth ride."

To Live In The Hearts.....

        

  "To live in the hearts of those we leave behind is not to die"...Thomas Campbell.

One day I was reading a romance novel on the bleachers of Farmers Oval Park where my friends and I hung out as teens. My friend Mike came and sat next to me and I read him this caption which was written on the beginning page of the book.  I couldn't have known then that he would be killed a year later and this saying would remind me of him for the rest of my life. I even took out an ad in my high school year book with this caption dedicated to him on a special page. The year he was killed he promised to take me to my high school prom. He died 6 months before.... Happy Birthday, my friend. I promised you as I walked away from your grave that I will never forget you. You have not died. As you will always live in my heart.

Soak. It. All. In.

When you first have children they talk about the challenges of parenting...the struggles of a baby waking in the night, the toddler who wont't stay in their bed, the cost of childcare, injuries from sports...

Having to take off work to pick them up from school when they don’t feel well, helping them with homework, a messy house, the never ending laundry, the cost to buy school clothes, packing their lunches....

You watch their eyes light up on Christmas morning....and try to soak in the magic of those moments.

You coach them in sports, rushing to practices and ballgames...and tote them all over the country to let them play the game they love...no matter how exhausting or expensive it becomes.

Life is just so busy that you rarely even stop to think what the end of those days look like.

In fact, it’s not really even something you can wrap your mind around.

You go into it thinking that 18-20 years sounds like a long time....

Then suddenly hours turn into days...days into months...and months into years.

That little person that used to crawl up next to you in bed and cuddle up to watch cartoons...suddenly becomes this young adult who hugs you in the hallway as they come and go.

And the chaos and laughter that used to echo throughout your home....gets filled with silence and solitude.

You’ve learned how to parent a child who needs you to care for and protect them....but have no clue how the whole “letting go” thing is supposed to work.

So you hold on as tight as you can...wondering how time passed so quickly...feeling guilty that you missed something....

Because even though you had 20 years.....it just somehow doesn’t seem like it was enough.

You ask yourself so many questions...

Did you teach them the right lessons?
Did you read them enough books as a child?
Spend enough time playing with them?
How many school parties did you have to miss?
Do they really know how much you love them?
What could I have done better as a parent?

.....When it’s time for them to go, it all hits you like a ton of bricks.

And all you can do is pray....hope....and trust that God will protect them as they start to make their way into the world alone.

Parenting is by far the most amazing experience of your life....that at times leaves you exhilarated....while others leave you heartbroken.

So for all the parents with young children...whose days are spent trying to figure out how to make it through the madness...
Exhausted day in and day out...

Soak. It. All. In.

Because one day....all those crazy days full of cartoons, snuggles, sleep overs, Christmas morning magic, ballgames, practices and late night dinners...

All come to an end.

And you’re left hoping that you did enough right, so that when they spread their wings....But one thing is certain.....it’s never enough time...💕

They’ll fly...💕💕💕
@MistyBrewerLee

Credit to the Amazing Author:

At The Foot of the Cross

At the Foot of the Cross
Fearing the battle was over
And I’d already lost the war,
I was tired of trying and failing.
I just couldn’t fight anymore.
So, dragging my battle-scarred body,
I crawled to the foot of the cross.
And I sobbed. ‘Oh please, Father forgive me.
But I tried…I tried.. and still lost.’
Then the air grew silent around me.
I heard his voice just as clear as the dawn:
‘Oh, My child, though you are tired and weary,
You can’t stop, you have to go on.’
At the foot of the Cross , where I met Him,
At the foot of the Cross, where He died,
I felt love, as I knelt in His presence .
I felt hope, as I looked in His eyes.

Then He gathered me lovingly to Him,
As around us God’s light clearly shone.
And together we walked though my lifetime
To heal every wound I had known.
I found bits of my dreams, long forgotten ,
And pieces of my life on the floor.
But I watched as He tenderly blessed them,
And my life was worth living once more.
I knew then why I had been losing.
I knew why I had not grown.
At the foot of the Cross came the answer:
I’d been fighting the battle alone.

At the foot of the Cross, where I met Him,
At the foot of the Cross, where He died,
Then I knew I could face any challenge
Together–just my Lord and I.
by Marcia Krugh Leaser

Babe- Styx

I went to the record store and bought this 45. I crossed out "Babe" and wrote "Mom" on the cover sleeve and gave it to my mother to play on her phonograph. The year was 1979. Research claims it was released in September of that year but I specifically remember giving it to her while I still lived at home prior to my wedding and I was getting ready to move to Connecticut. That would have made it's release prior to July '79. Either way, every time I hear it I a reminded of my best friend and the hardest goodbye I ever said. 

Church

Church is hard.
Church is hard for the person walking through the doors, afraid of judgement.
Church is hard for the preacher’s family, under the microscope of an entire body.

Church is hard for the prodigal soul returning home, broken and battered by the world.
Church is hard for the girl who looks like she has it all together, but doesn’t.
Church is hard for the couple who fought the entire ride to service.
Church is hard for the single mom, surrounded by couples holding hands, and seemingly perfect families.
Church is hard for the widow and widower with no invitation to lunch after service.
Church is hard for the deacon with an estranged child.
Church is hard for the person singing worship songs, overwhelmed by the weight of the lyrics.
Church is hard for the man insecure in his role as a leader.
Church is hard for the wife who longs to be led by a righteous man.
Church is hard for the nursery volunteer who desperately longs for a baby to love.
Church is hard for the single woman and single man, praying God brings them a mate.
Church is hard for the teenage girl, wearing a scarlet letter, ashamed of her mistakes.
Church is hard for the sinners.
Church is hard for me.
It’s hard because on the outside it all looks shiny and perfect. Sunday best in behavior and dress.
However, underneath those layers, you find a body of imperfect people, carnal souls, selfish motives.
But, here is the beauty of church—
Church isn’t a building, mentality, or expectation.
Church is a body.
Church is a group of sinners, saved by grace, living in fellowship as saints.
Church is a body of believers bound as brothers and sisters by an eternal love.
Church is a holy ground where sinners stand as equals before the Throne of Grace.
Church is a refuge for broken hearts and a training ground for mighty warriors.
Church is a converging of confrontation and invitation. Where sin is confronted and hearts are invited to seek restoration.
Church is a lesson in faith and trust.
Church is a bearer of burdens and a giver of hope.
Church is a family. A family coming together, setting aside differences, forgetting past mistakes, rejoicing in the smallest of victories.
Church, the body, and the circle of sinners-turned-saints, is where He resides, and if we ask, He is faithful to come.
So even on the hard days at church—
The days when I am at odds with a friend, When I’ve walked in bearing burdens heavier than my heart can handle, yet masking the pain with a smile on my face. When I’ve worn the pressures of the world, under the microscope. When I’ve longed for a baby to hold, or fought tears as the lyrics were sung. When I’ve walked back in, afraid and broken, after walking away.
I’ll remember, He has never failed to meet me there.
Adapted from Choosing Freelen, and also at http://www.choosingfreelen.com/ .

Morning Reflection: Give Thanks In All Things

Morning reflection: It's radical, It's joyful, It's calming... giving thanks to God in all things. Every morning, every day as the seasons of my life continue. ........" God asks us to give thanks in everything --- because this is the way you live through anything. … the counting of everyday gifts is a wildly simple way to move our focus beyond burdens of life to the blessings of now. Scavenger hunt every day for God’s glory, His grace gifts — and find more joy — more joy in Him. And count all the ways He loves you — and find yourself Beloved" - "Ann Voskamp".


"In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.” Thessalonians 5:18

Morning Reflection: Because God Sees

Morning thoughts: There are many choices in life we must make. We all choose a certain way to act, to speak, to respond , to be. Whether it be with our spouses, our families, friends or co-workers or just by ourselves. For me, in my life, I choose those actions knowing with all certainty that the eyes of God sees everything.  Think about that awesomeness. The eyes of God see everything. This truth has guided me, inspired me, charted my daily course and steered my direction. Am I perfect? No. Do I fail miserably? Yes. Terribly.  But one thought sustains me. I know the eyes of God are loving and forgiving. I wrap myself in the warmth of that knowledge and I go on each day.. And with all certainty, I know I am perfect in His eyes.