A Loving Reminder: Remembrance

A Loving reminder: 

Publish his glorious deeds among the nations. Tell everyone about the amazing things he does. (1 Chronicles 16:24 NLT)

It was there at Gilgal that Joshua piled up the twelve stones taken from the Jordan River. Then Joshua said to the Israelites, “In the future your children will ask, ‘What do these stones mean?’ Then you can tell them, ‘This is where the Israelites crossed the Jordan on dry ground.’ (Joshua 4:20-22 NLT)

I had a beautiful sister in Christ whom encouraged me to journal my prayer request and the answers to my prayers. I love to document the awesome things I've witness God do in my life. I like to call them my 'twelve stones'. In times of hurt, grief, and waiting, I have my 'twelve stones' to remind myself of God's Faithfulness. 

Unfortunately we quickly can forget the things that God has done in our lives. I confess that this past weekend I found myself in a moment of hurt, of waiting, of grieving, of fear and I had to be reminded of God's hand over myself and my family.  

Instead of focusing on the pain in the hurt, the anxiety in the waiting, the struggle in the grief, focusing on the things God has already done brings peace. 

And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them. (Romans 8:28 NLT)

Thank you Father for your faithfulness!! I fail you daily but you never fail me! I choose to remember all the wonderful things you have already done for me and if you choose to do no more, you would have already done enough! I lift up any of my lovelies that are struggling. Father remind them of your faithfulness over their lives. Remind them how you delivered them from different situations.  Give them spiritual eyes to see that what they otherwise cannot see. You are still seated in the throne and in full control. We are limited but You are limitless. Nothing is impossible for You. In Your powerful name, Jesus, Amen! 

A Loving Reminder: Always on His Mind

A Loving Reminder: 

I can never escape from your Spirit! I can never get away from your presence! How precious are your thoughts about me, O God. They cannot be numbered! I can’t even count them; they outnumber the grains of sand! And when I wake up, you are still with me! (Psalms 139:7, 17-18)

Lovelies, one of my favorite Psalm's is 139. It reminds me that I am always on my Father's mind, and that no one knows me better than He that created me. In life we sometimes connect with people in such a way that sometimes words need not be spoken, but no one knows you better than your maker. He examines our soul. Our lives are written in His book. Nothing can happen to us, without Him knowing about it. This includes our grievances and our joys. 

If possible, take time today and read Psalm 139 ( http://bible.us/116/psa.139.1.nlt ) and reflect on your connection with God. Indulge in the facts that:

He knows everything about you.

He knows every thought even when we stray from Him. 

He is with you every waking moment. 

He goes before you and behind you. 

There isn't a place you can run to hide from Him. 

He guides you.

He supports you with His strength. 

He made you wonderfully complex!

And His thoughts of you are like the sand and cannot be numbered! 

I don't know about you but His thoughts about me get me excited!

Father, I come boldly before your throne full of praise. I thank you for You know us well. You knew us in our mother's womb. It was in that place where You created us. 

There is not a thought or a word that we speak forth that you didn't already know. You know our success and our failures, our joys and our grievances. Thank you Father that we cannot escape you. That in All things (not just some) and in all places we are in your presence. Father continue to examine our hearts, to guide us and strengthen us. In your precious name, Jesus, Amen!

A Loving Reminder: He Gathers Us

A Loving Reminder: 

They will follow the Lord; he will roar like a lion. When he roars, his children will come trembling from the west. Hosea 11:10

Lovelies, I have wandered in the desert, where the land is dry and I was left thirsty and hungry, never satisfied. One morning I heard the Lord roar at me. I heard him tell me about me. Tell me about my wrongs, and warning me about changes I had to make.  He didn't use anyone to speak into my life. It was a personal encounter during a fast I was doing in preparation for a testimony I was to share. With fear and trembling I understood everything He spoke into my spirit.

I am not perfect. I am work in progress, but I am certainly not where I use to be. When I thirst I know where to draw water.

When I'm hungry I know where to be fed. 

Father, I come before your throne with a grateful heart, for I am redeemed. I know who's I am.  I wandered, I was unsettled but you gathered me. You relentlessly pursue me. You roar like a lion and back I am with trembling and fear, but in the hands of Unfailing Love! This is my story Lord, you have brought me to a place where I'm settled. As David said in Psalm 40  I proclaim your saving acts....; I do not seal my lips, Lord, as you know. I do not hide your righteousness in my heart; I speak of your faithfulness and your saving help. I do not conceal your love and your faithfulness... Father I pray that you gather those hearts that are wandering from east and west, from north and south. Hear their cries and show them your unfailing love. Do not withhold your mercy from your children, Lord; may your love and faithfulness always protect us. In Your precious name, Jesus, Amen

A Loving Reminder: God goes before us

A Loving Reminder: 

I will go before you and will level the mountains; I will break down gates of bronze and cut through bars of iron. (Isaiah 45:2 NIV)

What a beautiful reminder to know that when you walk in the will of God, He makes a way where it sometimes seems impossible. 

In life we face many mountains. 

Mountains of financial difficulties.

Mountains of loss.

Mountains of pain.

Mountains of uncertainty.

Mountains of change.

Mountains of worries.

We see the mountains ahead of us and we become overwhelmed with anxiety and concern on how we will get over them.  

But God says  'I will go before you and will level the mountains'.

He will make a way, a path for you to get through. 

But God says 'I will break down gates of bronze and cut through bars of iron'. He will make doors open for you to get through. 

The Lord himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.” (Deuteronomy 31:8 NIV)

Father, I come before You with a grateful heart, knowing that in all walks of life, as long as I remain in Your will and not mine, You go ahead of me. Father I lift up those lovelies to you that may be facing mountains today. I pray that You give them spiritual eyes, revealing to them how big YOU are. Showing them You are bigger than any mountain they can ever face. That You have gone ahead of them paving a way for them to get through. Your Word says that You will go before us and with us and that You will never leave us or forsake us. Let my lovelies choose to stand on the promises You have laid before us, in Your Word. Father fill them with a peace that goes beyond their understanding. I pray this in Your precious and powerful name, Jesus, Amen!

A Loving Reminder: Stand Guard

A Loving Reminder: 

But we prayed to our God and posted a guard day and night to meet this threat. Therefore I stationed some of the people behind the lowest points of the wall at the exposed places, posting them by families, with their swords, spears and bows. After I looked things over, I stood up and said to the nobles, the officials and the rest of the people, “Don’t be afraid of them. Remember the Lord, who is great and awesome, and fight for your families, your sons and your daughters, your wives and your homes.” (Nehemiah 4:9, 13, 14 NIV)

I recall having a conversation with a loving sister in Christ about how hard life is. One thing she said still resonates in me. She said "Life is hard, but life without God is harder". I think often how much I run in prayer to God for refuge throughout my day, for myself and for others, and then I started to think of those who don't truly know, understand, or believe in the power of the one who created them. The power of the awesome God who fights for us and our homes. 

Lovelies, one thing is for certain, threats will come. They come in all shapes and forms, and sometimes they come disguised. We must remain united and diligent about being on guard daily through prayer and intersession, to meet the threats that come to us daily. 

But stay awake at all times, praying that you may have strength to escape all these things that are going to take place, and to stand before the Son of Man." (Luke 21:36 ESV)

Father, thank you for the reminder that you are the Great and Awesome God that fights for us and our families. I ask that you give us the strength and stamina to be on guard day and night in prayer, not only for ourselves but for each other. Let us meditate on your promises from morning to night, that when the heaviness of the world falls on our shoulders that we be able to withstand it through your grace. In your precious name, Jesus, Amen! 

A Loving Reminder: Faith In Action

A Loving Reminder:

Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see. (Hebrews 11:1)

Every night before going to bed I pray over my seven year old daughter, but she seems to have nightmares often.  Yesterday she visited a Native American Museum with her camp. She came back a little sad because she didn't have money to buy a 'dream catcher'. I tried to assure her that all she needed was God. That when she wakes from a nightmare that she is to pray to God that he fills her with peace and for Him to take her nightmares away, and she replied "I do ask Him to take it away and He doesn't!" 

This morning I confessed to my prayer partner that I often feel like that. I have a pain that I ask God to take away but He doesn't. lovingly she said, "I'm determined to have these quiet times with him (God), someday he will fix me." 

What a loving reminder, to see Faith In Action, to have confidence and hope in things not seen. 

Father, I come humbly before you, asking for your forgiveness and grace. Forgive us for the times that we lose faith and hope because we don't see change right away. Your word says that your grace is sufficient for us. Help us to never forget that. I pray for my lovelies who like me are in the waiting for something. That you remind us that you have already done enough. That you pour your grace over us and that we not cease to put our 'Faith into Action'.

Thank you Father for your loving reminders. In your powerful name, Jesus. Amen

A Loving Reminder: First thing in the morning

A Loving Reminder: 

In the morning, Lord, you hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before you and wait expectantly. (Psalm 5:3 NIV)

How I start my morning makes all the difference on how my day develops. When I start my morning with a grateful heart, praising God and covering myself with His Word, my day seems to go smoother. I have spiritually nourished my soul and I am better prepared for the attacks of this world.  But on days that I'm rushing out my door and I don't give God my first, I am ill prepared and I am a mess. 

Father, I come with a grateful heart before your throne. I give you thanks and praise that You gently wake me up each morning before sunrise and I get to spend that waking moment with you. You hear my praise, my thoughts, my desires, and my sorrows. I lay them down on your throne early in the morning, and in exchange You sustain me through my day. Thank  You father, that you never fail me. When I sleep you are there and when I wake your presence is the first thing that greets me. I pray that my lovelies experience what it is to be greeted by You every morning. In your precious name, Jesus, Amen! 

A Loving Reminder: A prayer for you

A Loving Reminder:

And it is my prayer that your love may abound more and more, with knowledge and all discernment, (Philippians 1:9) 

Blessed are those who find wisdom, those who gain understanding, Her ways are pleasant ways, and all her paths are peace. She is a tree of life to those who take hold of her; those who hold her fast will be blessed. (Proverbs 3:13, 17, 18 NIV)

My lovelies, It is important that we seek God and read His Word with intention of growing more in relation with Him. I love the Word because its full of great advice that still holds true today. 

Give careful thought to the paths for your feet and be steadfast in all your ways. (Proverbs 4:26 NIV)

Father, I come before you, thanking you and full of praise, for allowing me to have a relationship with you. Thank you for showing me the difference between being religious and walking in relation to You and your Word. I pray that my lovelies and myself seek you in all things and at all times. That they seek You in every decision they make, in every step that they take. I pray that we grow in your abounding love, that we grow in knowledge of You and your will for our lives and discernment to go forth in all we do and say. I pray this in your precious name, Jesus, Amen!

A Loving Reminder: Never Changing

A Loving Reminder: 
Teach me your way, Lord, that I may rely on your faithfulness; give me an undivided heart, that I may fear your name. Psalm 86:11 NIV

Lovelies, so often we depend on the ever changing things of this world. Things like jobs, money, the homes we live in, people we love and trust. Putting all of our energy into them, not thinking that from one morning to the next it can all change. We can lose our jobs, we can go bankrupt, our homes can be destroyed in an unexpected natural disaster, we can lose a loved one or become disappointed by someone we loved and trusted. 

One thing is for certain, our circumstances will change, people will walk in and out of our lives; But, Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever. Hebrews 13:8

Thus says the Lord : "Cursed is the man who trusts in man and makes flesh his strength, whose heart turns away from the Lord. He is like a shrub in the desert, and shall not see any good come. He shall dwell in the parched places of the wilderness, in an uninhabited salt land. "Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, whose trust is the Lord. He is like a tree planted by water, that sends out its roots by the stream, and does not fear when heat comes, for its leaves remain green, and is not anxious in the year of drought, for it does not cease to bear fruit." The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it? (Jeremiah 17:5-9 ESV)

Father, I come boldly before your throne, grateful for your faithfulness, and your unfailing love. Forgive us for the many times we rely on the things of this world, and putting our trust in man, rather than relying and putting our trust on You and what your word promises us.  Teach us your way, teach us to rely on Your faithfulness. Lord give us an undivided heart. Father I pray for a heart that aligns with Your word and Your will for our lives. Your word says Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God. (Psalm 20:7) Thank you Father for giving us something solid to stand on. I pray that You may dwell in our hearts through faith, so we grow rooted and grounded in your love.  In your precious name, I pray, Jesus, Amen.