Patience comes with many hard times

Merry Christmas!!

Last week we talked about Joseph, his childhood, and how God was setting him to be successful even when he might not have realized it.  This week we are going to dive further in to Joseph patience and why we should all strive to be a little more like him. 

We left off right when his brothers sold Joseph into slavery for 20 shekels of Silver or about $136.16 in today currency.  When Joseph reached Egypt, (more likely than not walking the entire way) Potiphar, one of Pharaohs officials, bought him.  This was God working again in Joseph’s life even if he didn’t realize it. Within no time, Joseph was Potiphar’s lead man.  Potiphar had entrusted just about everything to Joseph.  God was with Joseph and he prospered.  However, there was a slight snag, Potiphar’s wife thought that Joseph was a handsome young man and she wanted to sleep with him.  Now I’m just throwing this out there, but I would assume that she was used to getting her way.  

Joseph was a righteous man though and wouldn’t sleep with her.  He told her, “How then could I do such a wicked thing and sin against God?” Genesis 39:9  I absolutely love this answer! He didn’t say, “No your too ugly”, or “no my master would be furious”, or even, “maybe, but let’s make sure we don’t get caught.”  He told her how could I sin against God.  She on the other had was furious with this answer saw the opportunity to make him learn with her lies and told everyone that he came to “make sport of her” until she screamed and scared him off.  Literally quite the opposite of what happened.  Nonetheless, Potiphar soon found out and sent Joseph to prison for a crime he didn’t commit. 

Again, all of this happened to Joseph for a reason. I’m sure in the moment he didn’t realize it but God was working on saving hundreds of thousands of people and needed Joseph to be able to handle tough situations with dignity and a sound mind. 

Joseph was in prison for about 2 years and during that time, the prison keeper put Joseph in charge of the entire prison he was in.  Again, God led Joseph to a place of leadership.  Two of pharaohs officials were jailed in that same prison and they both had dreams the same night.  They came to Joseph and through God; he gave them the interpretation of their dreams.  One was promising and the other not so promising.  Both dreams came true just as Joseph had said they would.  Again, Joseph had to learn more patience because neither official honored their word and told Pharaoh about Joseph and his strong relationship with God. Here is the thing; we almost want to blame them don’t we? I know that I do. However, they were doing what God needed them to do.  God wasn’t ready for Joseph to be revealed to the world again. 

Later the chief cup barer remembered Joseph and told Pharaoh about him after no one else could interpret his dreams.  In short, order Joseph was cleaned up and brought to see pharaoh.  Again, through God Joseph gave pharaoh the interpretations of his dreams.  The key here is that Joseph didn’t take any credit for the interpretations; he gave it fully to God.  Without patience and wisdom, Joseph might have been tempted to say, “Well Mr. pharaoh after hearing your dreams here is what I have determined.”  Instead, he replied ^“I cannot do it,” Joseph replied to Pharaoh, “but God will give Pharaoh the answer he desires.” Genesis 41:16

Joseph goes on to be second in command of the land of Egypt.  His first visions come true when his brothers come down to buy grain; they literally bow down to him.  Joseph didn’t hold any grudges though he sold them grain, and then placed the silver they paid with back into the sacks secretly.  The story doesn’t stop there, but that’s where we are ending today.  I highly encourage you to back and re-read the entire story of Joseph to learn about his patience. 

God we come to you today with such a humble heart.  We are thankful that you utilize us in ways that we might never fully understand.  We are thankful that you help us to grow through the situations that we see as, not great.  We are thankful that you continue to give us hope, and strength.  God we pray that you would open our eyes to you and your ways.  Help us to always give you credit for everything that happens, even when those things don’t seem to be in our favor.  Help us to have the patience to realize that you are great and always good.  You are working for us, not against us.  Lord we would like to take a moment and ask that you open our eyes to see you and your work in our lives, open our ears to hear the work you are doing for us, and help us to keep our mouth shut so we can hear and see you.  Help us to glorify you in every aspect of our lives.  We pray that when others see the way we live it encourages them to live a more righteous life. 

God thank you for your son, for the sacrifices that both you have made for us, thank you for being there for us, even when we lose sight of the path.  Thank you

Amen

Patience is more than a virtue!

We are going to spend the next few weeks talking about patience. Not because you need to hear it, but because I need to hear it.  Lol. 

Let’s take a closer look at Joseph and his patience.  Joseph was to say the least slightly spoiled as a young child.  His father, Jacob (Israel) was not afraid to let Joseph's siblings know that he liked him better.  He made an “ornate” robe for him to wear.  Joseph’s brothers hated him for multiple reasons. One was that Joseph tattled on them (Genesis 37:2), coming in from the field he told his dad all things that they were doing wrong.  You see Joseph didn’t make his life any easier with his siblings by his actions.  Here’s the thing, God didn’t say “Joseph because you are spoiled and you like to tattle on your brothers I’m going to punish you.”  Instead, he said Joseph I have a plan for you. 

God blessed Joseph with some visions where his siblings and his parents bowed down to him.  Even though Joseph was Jacob’s favorite, he rebuked him because of the visions.  “Do you really think that your mother and I will actually bow down to you?” As Joseph, how would you answer that question?  Personally, if that were to have happened to me I would have had second thoughts about if the visions came from God.  You see God speaks to us all differently, that’s we are supposed to be learning from this.  God came down with his angles and spoke to Abraham, he wrestled with Jacob, he shut the mouths of the lions for Daniel, and he gave Joseph the ability to see and intemperate visions.  God speaks to us all in different ways. 

I’ll bet you are thinking how is any of this dealing with patience, how is this going to help me be more patient. The next part of Joseph's story is where Joseph learned patience.  He was sent out to check on his brothers and when they saw him coming the seemed a plan to kill him.  Luckily, one of his brothers persuaded them not kill him but tie him and throw him in a cistern.  This might not seem like a real win but it was for him, because his intentions were to come back later and pull him out and get him back home safely.  However, while he was away his other brothers sold him into slavery for about 20 shekels of silver.  That’s about 8 ounces or 230 grams, in today’s currency that equals (12/15/2019 Silver price per ounce, $17.02) so the sold Joseph for $136.16!  Holy cow, that’s even one trip to Walmart for most families!! 

God was with Joseph and was teaching him patience.  He took this spoiled kid that was always favored and turned him into a slave so he could learn a lot more than patience.  God gave Joseph the strength to endure everything that happened to him. He shaped Joseph into the leader that he needed him to be so that later in his story he could save hundreds of thousands or even millions of people through 7 years of hardship.  Josephs beginning is part of the story that we sometimes miss, but it is vital to think about because it lets us know that it’s ok if we don’t always have the patience we think we should have.  It also lets us know that God is there for us through the hard times, he is using those times to shape us into the person we need to be.

God we come to you today to thank you for everything that happened to us.  We thank you for the hardships that you have helped us through.  We thank you for the times where we weren’t sure that you were really there for us.  The times that we were on top of the world and forgot that, you were the reason that we were there.  We thank you for the patience that you have with us.  We know that we can be hard headed, especially me just ask my wonderful wife.  We thank for not giving up on us, even when we didn’t deserve to have you on our side.  God we would ask that you would give is the faith of Abraham, Daniel, David, job, and john.  We pray that you would help give us the courage to claim your name and shout it from the rooftops.  We are grateful for the journey that you are sending us on, even when we don’t understand why things are happening give us the strength to know that you are helping to mold us into the person you need us to be. God lastly, we hope that you help us to know that everything happens in God’s time not our time.  Help us know that your timing is perfect, it may not align with our schedules, but it is perfect.

Thank you for the gift of your son, the gift of the holy spirit, the gift of being able to share your word and to help others remain strong in your faith. 

Thank you

Amen.

Faith in God includes Faith in his timing

We know that all things work together for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose.  Romans 8:28

It is not very often that we are on the same timing as God.  He has the perfect solution to every problem and the ultimate outcome to the perfect life.  If we would just get out of his way.  All too often we offer up a solution to a problem.  Let me handle this, or God you should do this.  I can just see him laughing at all our silly solutions.  I like to think about it as having this awesome hamburger.  Although it might be juicy and cooked just right.  God has this prime cut of steak grilled to perfection just ready for us if we would just be patient.  Taking a deep breath and sitting in the passenger’s seat, while God takes the steering wheel isn’t easy.  Its ok God’s got this.  If you take a step back and ask God to guide you, he will.  However listening and acting on his timing takes a lot of work and prayer.  I know that I am still working on this every day.  Some things that I like to do is pray all the time.  When I’m unsure or even when things are going great.  I pray.  Thank God for your struggles.  He is helping you grow and learn. 

In our society we have so many things that can fill up our everyday lives.  A lot of them can be wonderful and we really enjoy doing them every day, some not so much.  If at all possible take a few minutes every day to spend with God in his word.  I find that if I miss this step for to many days in a row, I start to lose control.  In my actions and situations or even with my emotions and attitude.  Having that one on one time with God and in his word is so beneficial to everyone.  The easiest time to do this is first thing in the morning, or right before bed.  If you’re on the road you might have a break that you need to take, or at lunch.  Find a quit place that you can focus.  Like I said this doesn’t have to be a long time.  A couple of verses or a chapter might be all you need to get you moving in the right direction.  If you feel like you need a little more, then listen to that and dig a little deeper. 

Don’t fight to make everything come out just right.  Gods timing is always so much better if we can just listen and be patient.  Faith in God includes faith in his timing.

Lord we come to you today with open arms and an open mind.  We know that you are the one and only almighty God, the maker of the heavens and the earth and the redeemer.  We would like to a few moments and thank you for being there for us, even when we aren’t always there for ourselves.  Thank you for being with us as we continue through our current season of life.  Thank you for bringing the peace and the chaos to our lives, we know that you are using both to help better us.  Lord if we could ask for a couple of things they would be that you help us to listen to you.  Jesus always said “those with ears let them hear”, Lord we have ears let us hear you.  Lord we also ask that you help us to continue to come to your word and your teaching.  Help us to stay on the right track for you. Help us to keep strong in our faith and to never be afraid to let others know what you are doing for us and what you have done for us.  Lord we thank you for your patience and preservice. Thank you for your timing.

Tis the season for..... Patience and Humility

Ephesians 4:2-3: “With all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace."

With the week of Thanksgiving behind us and the Christmas season coming on there are many different devotionals we could write about how without Christ Christmas wouldn’t exist.  We hope that you already realize that so we would like to focus more on humility and patience this week. 

Humility is one of the things that we can loose very quickly in life. As soon as we start to “succeed" our humbleness can fly right out the window. I know this from past experiences I have to admit that I’m not the most humble person all of the time. What I can say is that every time God takes the tie to humble me, it’s always been a good lesson and I truly needed the teaching. I have also found that after I finally listened to him, I was more at peace than I was when I was arrogant. I also felt closer to him afterwards.

Patience is another thing that I lack at times.  Especially with my loved ones , & occasionally co workers.  It would seem that the closer I get to someone the less patience I have with them. How is that?  We should have more patience with the ones who are closer to us. It’s almost as though unconsciously we think that they have to be more forgiving.

When I notice that I’m having issues with humility or patience (pretty much every day), Here’s what I try to do to keep myself in check.  Are you ready this is some really extreme stuff right here.  I PRAY. That’s right I take time and give it all back to God.  I ask him to help me with my weaknesses and help me to be the person he wants and needs me to be.  It’s pretty simple in the end, just give it all back to God and I’m closer to him, have more humility, and more patience with others and myself.

Lord as I reflect today I would like to thank you for everything that you have given unto us. I would like to give you full credit for our lives and the abilities that you have blessed out hands and minds with the ability to perform.  Lord I would also like to ask that you open our hearts to you and your word. That you take a few moments to show us who you would like us to be and how you need us to act and react. Lord we thank you taking time to help us where and when we need it.  Thank you for your wisdom and knowledge  please guide our every thought, conversation, and action through every season of our lives.

Amen

Forgiveness can be tough, but it is necessary.

While they were stoning him, Stephen prayed, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” Then he fell on his knees and cried out, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” When he had said this, he fell asleep.
Acts 7:59-60

We have all been wronged and we have all wronged someone in the past.  Maybe our sister said some mean things, maybe we made an inappropriate comment about someone’s weight, maybe someone used their position of authority to make your life harder than necessary.  We could go on and on.  The point is that it happens, every day.  How we choose to deal with it is what’s really important.  Not only that, but also how quickly we forgive them for their actions or how quickly they forgive us is really the thing that we need to look at. 

Stephen CHOSE not only to forgive those who were literally attempting to kill him while they were in the act, He asked God to forgive them as well.  That’s true faith and someone who is great at forgiving. 

Think about the last time you were wronged by someone.  Was it really important, did it alter the direction of your life? Did what they do really cause so much damage that you couldn’t move forward?  I’ve been there, or at least I thought in the moment.  Then later God showed me how their actions were something that I could learn from, or because of what happened my life was altered in such a great way.  I couldn’t see it at first though.  How quick did you forgive the person that wronged you?  Did you have the courage to do it instantaneously or did it take days, weeks, months, or even years?  Who were you really hurting in the long run by not forgiving them right away?  YOURSELF!  That’s right by choosing to hold a grudge you were only hurting yourself. 

Now let’s turn the table.  When was the last time you wronged someone?  How did you feel afterwards? How long did it take them to forgive you?  If they harbored that grudge for a long time, did you finally give up and stop trying to right the wrong?  I know that I have, it just wasn’t worth my time to worry about why they were still upset.  On the same topic, were you able to forgive yourself?  Personally, I have done some very UN-GODLY things in my life that I am down right ashamed to talk about.  There are things that I still struggle with forgiving myself for, even after 20+ years.  Don’t forget to forgive yourself for your transgressions.  Don’t let them happen again, but forgive yourself it’s the only way that you begin to heal.

I know that there are some of us that are reading this thinking about one particular incident where we just can’t forgive that person.  I’m asking that you try, praying for god to soften your heart and theirs, pray for god to come into your life in a way that will allow you to let go of the pain.

Forgiveness is a powerful tool; we just have to use it. 

Lord, we come to you today with many different emotions.  We are thankful that you gave us the power to forgive others and ourselves for any mistakes that might have been made.  God we ask that you come into our lives and place your hand on us; you open our hearts to possibilities and opportunities that come with forgiveness.  We pray that you guide our words and thoughts daily so we don’t hurt anyone.  We know that through you anything is possible.  We know that we can move mountains through you.  Help us to see that by not forgiving others we are only hurting our relationship with you.  We ask that you open our eyes and our hearts so that we forgive with the same compassion Stephen had.  Lord we thank you for everything and everyone that you have placed in our lives.  We are thankful that you are involved in every aspect of our life. Thank you for your son, and the sacrifices that he made for us.  Thank you for all the wisdom about forgiveness that you share throughout the bible.  We do ask that you help us to forgive quickly, and that you help others to forgive us quickly.  Help us not to harbor grudges against anyone.

Thank you for your guidance and wisdom

Amen 

Everything happens in God's timing, not ours.

Acts 1:7 He said to them: “It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority.

I find it quite hilarious that I found this verse tonight as I was reading to our kids.  When I woke up this morning I sat up in bed and said, “Oh crap, I don’t have a devotional to send out!”  I worried about it for a while, prayed HARD for god to help me write a great one right now so it wouldn’t be too late.  Now here I sit 8:30 typing away without having any issues coming up with the right words.  God it is truly your timing, not ours.  We would like to thank all of you who are reading this and say we are sorry it was late, but we KNOW that God allowed this to happen to prove his point that everything happens in his timing, not ours.

So often I find myself looking to God and saying, “It would sure be nice if you could make this happen now, like right now.  Or “hey there big guy how about you tell me when this is going to happen so I can be prepared for it.”  Wouldn’t it be nice to know when certain things are going to happen in our lives?  Like when we will find the perfect spouse, or when our first child will be born, or maybe when we will either land the perfect job or start our business?  Those things might be nice to know but it’s not in God’s plans to divulge every detail to us.  And for good reason too.  We would find a way to mess it up. 

On the flip side would you really want to know the worse details like, when your child will pass away, or your friends, or whoever?  Would you want to know when you were going to get a horrible boss, or horrible coworkers? 

I’m glad that God doesn’t share his timing with me for a couple of reasons.  One is that it allows me to live life without knowing when things will happen.  It helps me to look for answers in him and his word when times are troubling.  It allows me to give him full glory when times are great.  It allows me to love unconditionally.  If I knew when I was going to have issues with management would I stay at the job or start looking right away?  There’s a good chance that I would start looking and then I would miss the learning experience that God was setting right in front of me. 

Lord we come to you late today and we are thankful for the opportunities that you have presented us with.  Even those opportunities that we don’t see as “great” ones.  We are thankful that everything is in YOUR time and not ours, because we know that you are teaching us every second of every day if we allow you to.  God I would like to ask one favor for the entire world, that is that you continue to keep your time.  You know what is best, help us to understand that you are in control and you are here to help us.

Thank you for everything that you have done and will do for us, Thank you for YOUR timing.

Amen

How is your Body Image?

When ever you feel unloved,

unimportant, or insecure,

remember to whom you belong.

Ephesians 2:19-22

Does your body make you feel unloved, unimportant or insecure?  Please take a moment and let me remind you that you were created in Gods image.  You are perfect exactly the way you are.  This does not mean to ever stop being the best person you can be, or continue to better yourself and grow.  This simply means that you are who you are and that is the perfect person you can be.  This is who God wants in this world right now.  We all have those moments when we feel less then perfect.  You may have woke up this morning and your pants fit a little tight.  There is two ways to handle this feeling.  You can sink lower in your self image, metaphorically put on a pair of sweats and crawl back in bed with a donut, or you can make a change right then to love your body and do the best you can to make it look and feel amazing.  Now this is important so listen closely.  The perfect body is yours!  Not your neighbors or your favorite TV star, Yours.   Listen to your body and only put into it what makes it feel fueled and good.  For me this is simple foods with little to no preservatives that are easy for your body to digest.  Of course I would say that adding exercising is a good idea.  If you are able to add this to your schedule then of course yes.  I know we are all busy and it is not always easy to exercise, but your body will love you if you are able to add a little in once in a while.  I encourage you to start with 5 minutes.  After that 5 minutes then make sure you think “wow” I got in a little exercising today.  It doesn't matter how much you do, but how you think about it.  I can run for an hour, but if I’m negative about it the whole time, did I win?  No, in fact it will be that much harder to start the next time you have time.  As you can slowly add more until you find the perfect time and intensity for your body.  Body image is what we make of it.  Ladies, if you want a “bikini body” then put on a bikini!  BAM! Done.  If you wait for your neighbors body you will never feel good about yours.  God made you perfect for you.  Guys, if you want to rock a slick look then go for it.  Confidence is sexy and a healthy body image is empowering and joyful for you.  When you love your body then God feels that love too.  There is always little things we can do to improve ourselves and I encourage you to do that in every part of your lives and never stop.  Our bodies may be giving us subtle or not so subtle signs that we need to follow in order for us to feel the best we can, but our minds and how we see ourselves has a lot to do with our body image as well.  Please remember that God loves you, thinks your important, wants you to embrace who you are and who you were created to be.  So the next time you feel unloved, unimportant , or insecure, remember who you belong.

Please God be with us this week and help us to love our bodies and see them the way you do.  Help each one of us go out today and tomorrow feeling confident in knowing that this is the perfect us.

How do your decisions today effect others tomorrow?

When the king made the decree that no one in the kingdom could not pray to any God or person other than the king for the next 30 days he didn’t think about how it effect his beloved friend and adviser, Daniel.  Daniel was faithful, and the men who convinced the king to issue the rule knew that Daniel would continue to pray to God for guidance.  What they didn’t realize is that God was allowing to happen for a reason.  So he could be glorified. 

What decisions have you made that effect others lately?  Did you say something that you could take back? Maybe you forgot to drain a hose and it froze then your spouse went to use it and it was full of holes?  We all make decisions everyday that effect others. There is no way to make a decision that wont affect someone else. 

The question I have is when was the last time you prayed before making a decision?  When was the last time you prayed before you went into a meeting, or made a call?  I am guilty of trying to rely on my own wits a lot, just like king Darius did.  Then just like king Darius I try extremely hard to make it right but fail and have to depend on God.  That’s what God wants us to do, lean on him all the time.  The bible doesn’t say that the king prayed earnestly but I would guess that he prayed all night long to God.  God was generous to Daniel because he found that he did not do anything wrong.  I would also say that he was generous to the king by saving Daniel. 

Lord we pray today that you guide our every decision.  We know that you work in ways that we may never see.  We know that everything happens for a reason, even if we don’t understand we know that you do and that is good enough reason for us.  God as go through our day we hope that your spirit will guide us.  Allow it to guide us through our every action, allow us to give you full control of our lives.  God we are thankful that you are involved in our lives and that you help us.  Lord we thank you for all of the abilities that you have giving us.  Thank you God. Thank you.

Amen

Appearance isn’t everything

But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”

1 Samuel 16:7

God was speaking about one of David’s older brothers in this verse.  Samuel thought that this fine young man must be the one God has selected to be the new king after Saul.  Samuel made that assumption based on his person thoughts.  I can only imagine that he was thinking our new king needs to be Strong, Courageous, Brave, Handsome, Tall, Muscular, and Smart (In no particular order).  What Samuel didn’t realize was that David was all of those things he just wasn’t developed yet. 

How often do you feel like you don’t have the skills necessary to do something, or for that matter anything?  Personally, I feel that way a lot.  When I was younger I remember being afraid to do something because I might mess it up.  If I tear it apart, I might not be able to put it back together then what?  As I got older, I realized that as long as I paid attention to the little details there wasn’t anything that I couldn’t do, simply because I knew that God was there.  I knew that God would give the necessary skills and knowledge to complete the project.  Much like he did with David. 

David had the courage to go up against a man who was close to 9’9” tall with no armor truly no weapons just some small stones and a sling.  David also knew that God was with him, he could feel it.  He knew that he was standing up for what was right, he was defending God.  David’s oldest brother the one mentioned in the scripture didn’t have the same courage. To be honest I don’t think I would have had the courage either.  The point is that God new what David would develop into.  He knows everything about everybody; he doesn’t judge us by our cover.  He looks closely at us to discover our true potential.

God, today we come to with open hearts and open minds.  We ask so much yet we give you so little, still you continually bless us.  Lord, we ask that you would help us to see not only our true potential, but also the potential in others.  Help us to look past their outward appearance and look deep into their hearts and our hearts.  Do not allow our eyes to be the hindrance that causes us to stumble.  We pray that you help us to believe in yourselves.  Even your son had troubles moments before being takin into custody.  He asked that if it be your will to remove the trouble before him.  God he trusted you, and so do we.  We know that you know what is best for us.  We ask that you give us the faith of Daniel in the lion’s den, hope of Moses in wilderness, and the heart of David always putting you first.  Lord thank you for your insight and wisdom, than you for your help in our everyday situations.  Thank you

Amen

Humility pays off, ALWAYS

The bible talks a lot about being humble, why do you think that is?  I believe that its more important to be humble than it is to be right.  Let’s say that you and your spouse don’t necessarily agree on some topics, I know that never happens but let’s say it does for this. Lol.  Is it really important that you win the battle and what will it cost really cost you in the end?  Those are questions that I ask myself every time that we start to bicker.  Does it really matter if I am right? Will it matter in 5 years if I win this argument?  Most of the time the answer is no it wont.  I was always told, as a child that I could argue with a fence post and in the end, the fence post would give up before I did.  I sure hope that I have changed that some. 

Humility is something that allows us to see that being right isn’t all that matters.  Sometimes we fight and fight and fight to get what we want and in the end, it wasn’t what we really needed.  Being humble and compassionate allows us to see the other side of every conversation or situation.  There is a good chance that we cant see the whole picture, especially when we get aggravated.

The second part of these verses talks about not repaying evil with evil. The best mentor that ever walked the earth, Jesus, spoke about how to treat your enemies.  He said that if one of them asks for your shirt then give them your coat.  Even if someone wrongs you forgive him or her immediately and don’t try to wrong them.  I can tell you that I have struggled with this many times, and I’m sure that the struggle is not over.  I try hard every day though to this my principle.

Lord, we come you to day with an extremely open heart.  We ask for so much and you have already given us more than we can ever imagine.  We ask that you help our hearts to be humble, compassionate, sympathetic, and forgiving.  We also ask that you help us to be strong enough and have the courage to pray for those who have wronged us.  Help is show them the love they so desperately need.  Help us to follow in your sons footsteps and listen, really listen to his advice about giving.  Lord we thank you for everything that you blessed us with, we thank you for your love, your compassion, and your sympathy. Lord thank you!

Is Prayer your steering wheel or your spare tire?

Do you only pray when you are in trouble?  I find that when things are going really well, I don’t talk to God as much as I should.    Life gets busy and we fill our days with so much that we don’t leave time to spend with God in prayer.   This is so important especially as we move into the holiday season when our lives are filled with family and friends, food, travel, and gifts.  Please don’t forget to talk to God.  There is always time.  First thing in the morning before you get out of bed, taking a shower, or driving to work.  Take a second to thank God for the weather, your family, your animals, the food you ate, your friends, your job, there is always something.  Find something to be thankful for no matter how small.  God is listening.  Ask God for guidance with a situation you are having.  Ask to open our hearts to solutions we have not yet thought of.  Pray for your family and friends health.  With just a breath you will feel more connected with God and the person you truly want to be.  Whether your in a season of peace and excitement, or troubled and hardships.  Look for that opportunity to talk to God.  He is listening to you.  Also the more you pray the easier it gets.  Try praying in a few different ways and see what works for you.  Silently in your head and heart.  Out loud in a quiet space.  Write it down in a prayer journal.  What ever way feels good to you. I have a friend that keeps a prayer journal and then goes back and writes how they were answered.  It is not always our plan or the way we think it should go, but know that God does answer your prayers.  Ask yourself is prayer your steering wheel or your spare tire?  I encourage you to let God be your steering wheel, talk to him daily and let him guide your every decision.  Don’t just come to God when you are stuck on the side of the road with a flat tire.  Don’t keep your relationship with him tucked away for a rainy day, utilize your relationship with him every day!

Please God be with us this week and encourage us to pray everyday several times a day.  Feel our hearts with comfort and peace.  Guide us in the direction you want us to go.  Please God help us to make prayer our steering wheel and not our spare tire. 

Hand it ALL over to God, Today!

When was the last time you fully submitted your thoughts, body, mind, and will to God? Not just for a moment, or even an hour once a week but fully submitted every aspect of your life to God? I can tell you that it has been a while for me. I try to do it regularly, but I have a tendency to only give him a few things and not everything.

Have you ever been worried about something? Maybe your kid comes home with C’s on his report card. Maybe your spouse is having issues at work. Maybe you are having issues being motivated to start working out. Maybe your parents are aggravating you because they won't let you live your life. There are millions of maybes. What's yours?

I can tell you from my personal experience that I when I'm over whelmed I have to stop what I'm doing and start handing it all over to God. It seems like as soon as I give it all over to him life starts running smoothly. I didn’t say that it was running in the same direction I would have chosen but it’s running smooth. We know that without God we are nothing, the only way to true everlasting life is through you. Through our son, with the Holy Spirit.

God, I pray for those not only reading this and living it right now, I pray for everyone in the world. I pray that you are with them and that you help them to allow you to have full control of their lives. Help us to have confidence that you know what is best for us. Help us know that you are the only way to live a blissful life. Help us to understand that you are there for us even when we are not sure if you are. We know that the teacher is always quite during the test. Therefore, when things are not going “our way” to know that you are there and it is our “job” to stay true to you. Thank you for your grace, your glory, and your greatness. Thank you. In your awesome sons name we ask all these things. Amen

Faith is trusting God has a plan for YOU & it is better than anything YOU could ever imagine

We’ve all had those days when nothing seems to be going right.   The dog peed down stairs, your kid wont put on their shoes, or the dishwasher leaked all over the floor, putting you 20 minutes late leaving the house.  In a hurried mess you rush to work already aggravated that nothing was going right.  On your way you pass a wreck and pray that no one was hurt.  Take a second and thank God for the crazy mess of a morning you just had.  If you would have been on time that could have put you in that same area at the time of the crash.  We do not realize Gods plan for us at the time, sometimes things happen to us that we just don’t understand.  Maybe you got passed up for a promotion that you know you would have been great at, broke an arm, gained weight, or broke up with your first love.  Each one of these situations can cause you to be angry, heartbroken, disappointed, and leave feelings of unfairness.  It's just like that old saying “hindsight is 20/20”.  Looking back you may realize how lucky you where that you didn't get that promotion.  Maybe it opened up another door for an even greater opportunity, or someone was brought in that you could learn from and grow (good or bad).  When you broke your arm, you were aggravated with the pain and the inconvenience it caused.  Now you know that you can lean on people for help in your time of need.  If you have gained weight lately.  Don’t let that hurt your body image.  Take this as an opportunity to dive into your health and diet to better yourself and your family.  Maybe your hurting from a breakup from someone you were seeing.  Please take comfort in knowing that the one God has chosen for you is still out there & waiting to meet you.  Or who knows maybe you have already met and it just wasn't the right time, yet.  Each day little and big things are put in our paths so that we can grow and learn from them.  Giving us the opportunity to change little things.  such as tidying up our house or changing our schedules so that we can leave earlier and not in a rush.  If we learn and grow from every situation we can motivate and help others around us.  We also have to be patient.  You may be in the middle of a situation that you just can’t see why this is happening.  Don't despair you are not quit able to have that "20/20 hind sight" yet.  Look for a way to learn from what is happening or an opportunity to share with someone what you are going through.  Use your experience to motivate or encourage someone around you.  Remember that we may not realize why right now, but later we will.

Please God be with us this week.  Help us to be patient with you and YOUR plan for us.  Help us to realize why we were meant to go through these struggles.  With your help Lord we know we will grow into the person you intended us to be.  In your precious name.  Amen