depend

Saturday, February 5, 2011 (7:37 a.m.)

Most Holy God,

I love You. You are good. You are faithful. And I love You. Thank You for the opportunity to get to know and trust You more and more. I depend on You Lord. I used to depend mostly on myself, others, the court of public opinion... When that changed so did everything else in my life.

Take right now for instance. I came out here to speak to You about being satisfied. I thought about it all night long. I had questions to ask and suppositions to make. Thank You that You know so much more than I. Thank You Lord that You know exactly where You want my focus. On You. Depending on You!

Lord, forty-six weeks ago You and I sat right here in this very house as You spoke to me about the importance of ‘letting my roots grow down into You and drawing up nourishment from You’ (Colossians 2:7). You went on to tell me “See that you go on growing in the Lord, and become strong and vigorous in the truth you were taught. Let you lives overflow with joy and thanksgiving for all He has done.”

May I just say “WOW!” and “Thank You God”? That very Saturday (46 weeks ago) You allowed the majority of my mom’s family to enjoy THE most delightful day with her in quite some time. And the very next day You took her away to be with You. Thank You Lord. Thank You for having grounded me so sturdily in Your Word that morning that when the time came to truly rely on and trust You, we were ready.

The preceding verse (6) that Saturday morning last March was, “And now just as you trusted Christ to save you, trust Him, too, for each day’s problems; live in vital union with Him.” I like to think I have done just that Lord. You are growing us. In ways we could have never imagined. And we are grateful. Wonderfully, truly grateful.

The verse You gave to me this morning (Colossians 1:29) did not mention the word ‘satisfied’ yet I realize how convinced I am in its truth. In his letter to the people of Colosse Paul told them of his talking about Christ wherever he went. “I work very hard at this, as I depend on Christ’s mighty power that works within me”.

It is on Your ‘mighty power that works within me’ that I depend each day Dearest Lord. Thank You for the strength and the courage it invokes. Use me this day as You wish, continuing to grow and nourish me as only You can. I love You so very much Dearest Lord. Thank You. Amen.

(458 words ~ 8:34 a.m.)

blessings, blessings, blessings

Friday, February 4, 2011 (7:18 a.m.)

Blessed God,

Blessings, blessings, blessings abound! Everywhere I turn Dearest Lord I am reminded of Your great and wonderful blessings.

Thank You Lord. Thank You for working in and through me to break former patterns. Thank You that old diseased ways of thinking are giving way to new and much healthier ones. Thank You that the blessings You provide us each and every day keep us coming back to You for more.

This morning, in just thinking about blessings I find myself in the midst of Jacob’s final one to his sons (Genesis 49). His remarks concerning each of them may seem harsh. Ah, but he was honest. They weren’t perfect. Neither was he. But he wanted to give them helpful direction before he left them.

Thank You Lord. Thank You that we have so much we can learn from parents of the Bible. As well as our own. Thank You that You don’t call any of us to be perfect. Just accepting of Your forgiveness and willing to make the changes necessary to take us into even deeper relationship with You.

Thank You Lord that You are so good. So loving. So kind. So forgiving. What an awesome, wonderful God You are. Full of blessings.

In describing the strengths and weakness of all his sons, Jacob had this to say regarding Joseph (vs. 22-26), “Joseph is a fruitful vine, a fruitful vine [also read ‘a wild colt’] near a spring, whose branches climb over a wall. With bitterness archers attacked him; they shot at him with hostility. But his bow remained steady, his strong arms stayed limber, because of the Mighty One of Jacob, because of the Shepherd, the Rock of Israel, because of your father’s God, who helps you, because of the Almighty, who blesses you with blessings of the heavens above, blessings of the deep that lies below, blessings of the breast and womb. Your father’s blessings are greater than the blessings of the ancient mountains, than the bounty of the age-old hills. Let all these rest on the head of Joseph, on the brow of the prince among his brothers.”

Lord God, thank You for the reminder that ALL our blessings come from You. Joseph was ever faithful to You. Thank You for his example. Thank You Jacob’s spelling out of the things You are to us. “Mighty One. Shepherd. Rock of Israel. Your father’s God, who helps you. The Almighty, who blesses you with blessings…

Oh most dear and precious Lord. Blessings abound. Help us use them wisely. For Your good and Your glory. Thank You so very much Dearest Lord. I love You. Amen.

(445 words ~ 9:08 a.m.)

focus!

Thursday, February 3, 2011 (6:14 a.m.)

Good Morning Dearest Lord,

I am here. You are good. Help me focus on YOU! I get so easily distracted. Take me deep into Your Word this morning, far away from all the things that would normally get in the way of You and I spending time together.

Lord, I want to thank You for the way You are working around here. You are definitely helping us decide what to keep and what to let go of. Thank You Lord. This is huge new territory for us. Working. Together. As a team. Encouraging one another. Listening to each other. Caring. Being kind and gentle. That is definitely YOU at work here in and through both of us. Thank You Lord. Thank You so very much!

What a blessing You are most precious God. I ask. You answer. Today at the end of First Chronicles.

(12:57 p.m.)

You answered. I read. And went promptly back to sleep. Lord God, thank You! Thank You that You are so good. So faithful. Thank You that You made us a people with choices. We get to choose. Deliberately. Or by default. Everything we think, say, do and become is because You gave us the gift of choice.

Thank You Lord. Every single thing I have done (and NOT done) so far this day has been as a result of where I choose to put my focus. Thank You Lord. You are teaching me to let go of things and in the process I am learning to let go of habits, mindsets and patterns that have not served me well in the past. Thank You Lord.

Thank You for allowing me the gift of excitement in learning. Deeply rooted desires of playing the piano well, learning to tap dance, living in a healthy, loving, uncluttered environment are gifts that are coming to pass. Joyous, gracious gifts on Your part. Gifts for which I am eternally grateful.

Lord, in the past I have had a great deal of trouble staying focused. King David prayed to You on behalf of his son, the next king of Israel. He concluded his prayer (1Chronicles 29:19) by saying “And give my son Solomon an uncluttered and focused heart so that he can obey what you command, live by Your directions and counsel, and carry through with building The Temple for which I have provided.”

Lord, You have reasons for every single thing You do. Today I choose to trust You without question. My plea is that You will continue Your amazing work around here by enabling me to focus on the remaining task at hand. The sorting of and ‘deciding what to keep’ process concerning our Christmas items is almost done. Empower me to finish it in these next few hours so that I may deliberately continue this work throughout the house.

I love You so much Dearest Lord. Thank You for the courage and the strength to make tough decisions of what to keep and what to let go. I love You. Thank You. Amen.

(512 words ~ 1:21 p.m.)

changes

Wednesday, February 2, 2011 (7:42 a.m.)

Awesome God,

Thank You for relief from pain. Thank You for tools with which to relax and adjust my body. Thank You Lord that You created us so perfectly.

Thank You Lord for change. Mm. Lord. Talk to me today about changes. Turning to the index at the back of my Bible where ‘change’ might be, I find ‘character defects’ and ‘choices’. No ‘change’ there. Adding the s to the end of the word narrows my Internet search from 77-100 possibilities to a much more manageable 4-5 entries. It’s in Daniel that I stop.

Chapter two tells of the forgotten dream of a powerful king. Your faithful follower Daniel was able to interpret for him what no one else was able. Giving credit to You, where it so rightfully belonged, Daniel praised You (verse 20) by saying, “Blessed be the name of God, forever and ever. He knows all, does all: He changes the seasons and guides history…”

Dearest Lord, You take such great and tender care of Your children. You are in control. You make changes in and through us that we could never possibly make for ourselves. How I thank You Lord.

Thank You for creating us, loving us and ultimately changing us to fit the mold You have for us.

How I ask You to continue working in us here as we make the changes You know are necessary for us in becoming the people You so want us to be.

We love You Lord. We thank You. And we look to You for the courage and the strength to keep making changes. Thank You. I love You. Amen.

(279 words ~ 8:39 a.m.)

amazing

Tuesday, February 1, 2011 (7:43 a.m.)

Amazing God,

You are so good. We get to turn to You always. In times of praise and in desperation. Thank You Lord. Thank You that You provide ample opportunities for us to ‘try You’ (Malachi 3:10) and prove that You are indeed trustworthy.

I did that the other night. In deep sadness I came to You. I gave You my hurting heart and You turned it into one of praise and thanksgiving. Thank You Lord. Thank You for teaching us to trust You with our deepest selves.

Thank You that we needn’t hide anything from You. You provide help, healing and wholeness to those who are willing to bring their pain before You. Thank You Lord.

Thank You for Job’s example as one who did nothing wrong yet suffered indescribable losses. He was a good and righteous man yet You allowed his faith in You to be tested severely. Thank You Lord that through it all he trusted You. He had an amazing faith in You that is available to us all.

Continue Your work in us most dear and holy God. Changing us from the inside out. Thank You for removing the defects of our characters. The things that distract us from knowing and seeing You in our lives.

You keep giving us opportunities to change. Supply us with the courage we need to make those changes.

♫Jesus Messiah, name above all names Blessed Redeemer, Emmanuel The rescue for sinners The ransom from Heaven Jesus Messiah, Lord of all… Love so amazing… The Lord of all♫

Thank You for helping me learn that it’s so much more important for me to come before You with ALL I am right off the bat. Thank You that You know and accept me with all my faults and I no longer have to waste Your precious time trying to figure them out and getting rid of them before coming unto You. Amazing. Lord, Your are truly amazing!

Work in me this day. Finely tuning me to wherever it is You’d have me use Your time and energy. Thank You Lord. I love You so much! Amen.

(361 words ~ 8:53 a.m.)

Jacob

Monday, January 31, 2011 (7:50 a.m.)

Morning God,

Talk to me this morning about “joy coming in …” and its homophonous word ‘mourning’. While waking up just earlier I kept interchanging these two words while softly singing to myself ♫… has broken like the first …♫

I like the way You work God. Constantly drawing us closer to You. Hmm. I just had the thought of struggling with someone with all my might. When all strength is gone and surrender finally comes, I distinctly remember the tight hold of conflict giving way to the tender embrace of comfort. THAT’S what You do for us. When we let You!

Thank You Lord. Thank You for giving me enough room to thrash around and carry on in the safe and secure confines of Your love. Blessed Lord, how I thank You!

You are growing me Lord. Deeply. Irrevocably. I will never be the same as I was. You are truly changing me from the inside out. Making me more dependent on You for my every choice, thought, word and deed. Thank You Lord. Thank You.

I struggled with sleep last night. I wrestled with my thoughts. Actually I believe them to have been more hurts and fears than just plain thoughts. Thank You Lord that I get to come before You with every single notion that enters my head. My heart. YOU can keep them from taking root in my soul and my strength. Thank You Lord.

Thank You that You are so good to send us Your Word of great comfort and joy. Your Holy Word reminds us that others have struggled and grown throughout the history of mankind. Mistakes have been made. But reconciliations, reunions and recovery have taken place as well.

Through all the twists and turns of my scrambled thoughts this morning, I keep coming back to Jacob. All the way back to his time with his older twin brother in their mother’s womb. YOUR absolute decision to show that we are to rely on Your purposes and not on the traditions or works of men. Thank You Lord.

Thank You that I get to keep turning my attention to You and Your Word, while checking my own attitude at the door. There’s a lot of deceit and dissension in the Genesis chapters concerning Jacob (25:19 – 49:33). Beginning in the womb he shared with his brother and ending with his death.

Lord. You offer us freedom. Too often we choose fear. Your way is best. Honesty. Love. Personal boundaries. Forgiveness. Healing. Joy. It’s all found in You. When we decide what to keep. And of what to let go. Thank You Lord. Keep working in me. Growing me. Changing me. Turning me into the ‘me’ YOU most want me to be. I love You Lord. Thank You. Amen.

(471 words ~ 8:50 a.m.)

sad

Sunday, January 30, 2011 (10:14 p.m.)

Loving Lord,

I’m here again because I’m feeling sad. REALLY sad. So much sadder than I’ve felt in such a very long time and I don’t know what to do with it. So I’m here. With You. And just like that I feel better. Less alone.

Thank You Lord. Thank You that as sad as I may feel at any given moment I get to come before You and confess it straight out loud [in this case, in print J] and I feel less desperate. Or is it more desperate? No. No. It’s less. WAY less desperate.

So Lord. Let me tell You how very much I love You. You cover me with Your goodness and Your grace. You let me come before You and literally pour my heart out to You. I don’t even have to spell anything out and the tears just start falling. Yet, at the very same time I know You are buoying me up. Thank You Lord!

I turn to Ezekiel 19 and read this “sad song, a text for singing the blues” (v.10 TLB) and I reaffirm my commitment to trusting You. You ARE our very good God! I read Your Word and I smile. I cling. I hope. I believe. I trust. And I pray Lord. Asking that ‘You will give me a new heart – new and right desires – and put a new spirit within me. Take out my stony heart of sin and give me a new heart of love’ (Ezekiel 36:26).

Do this Lord that I can forgive myself for being so blessed and feeling so sad. You know my hurting heart Dear Lord. You know my reeling mind. I come directly to You to break the past patterns of behaviors. Instead of score keeping and grudge holding Lord I am asking specifically for Your gift of forgiveness. I ask You to forgive me that I will forgive others, as well as myself. Keep working in me Lord. Making me more and more into the woman You have always wanted me to be.

Thank You for being here with me and for me Dearest Lord. I love You. I need You. I want You. And I thank You. So incredibly much. Thank You. Amen.

(381 words ~ 11:37 p.m.)