{ Who Wants to Cry? }

Let's talk a little about prayer.

Prayer is such a wonderful blessing and privilege that so many of us don't take full advantage of.  I've always felt like I have a good prayer life but I want to be perfectly honest with you about something. There are times that I pray little short prayers instead of getting into a really deep conversation with the Lord because.....

I know that I'm going to wind up in tears.

I don't mean just a few tears in the corners of my eyes.  I'm talking about boohooing and pouring my heart out to Him and asking forgiveness of sins (yes, I'm a sinner - we're ALL sinners) and praying for others and just sharing my heart with Him. It's during those prayers that I find it difficult to stop, although I'm crying because that's when I feel the closest to Him. It's like He's right there wrapping His arms around me to comfort and console and let me know that I'm truly His.  

This was one of those mornings and I felt like maybe I needed to share this with Y'all just for the sole purpose of telling you to NOT  be like me. Don't hesitate to pray because you know it's going to end up being a cry fest and you don't want to walk away from where ever your "war room" is looking like a total wreck because of the tears.  It's okay! The tears will dry up (He tells us He wipes away our tears) and the swelling will go down in the eyes and you'll feel like a burden has been lifted and will have peace in your heart to face the day!

{ The Power of Prayer ]

It takes a lot for me to ask for prayer for myself but I did just that from one of my most precious friends and she prayed for me then and there.  As I scrolled through my e-mails this morning, these two caught my attention.....

Mountain Wings

The Breadbox Letters

My sweet friend prays well.

{ Monday Morning Prayer }

My sweet friend, Ms. Rhonda, shared this prayer on her Facebook page, A Journey to Healthier Living, 

and I thought it would  be perfect to start off our Monday.

Lord, today I offer You my mind

May I seek the mind of Christ in all things

Freed from anxiety and fear

Filled with wholeness and wellness.

Today I offer You my spirit

In You I have been born again.

Your Spirit dwells deeply within me.

My Spirit is alive in You,

Freed from depressive thoughts and critical thinking.

 

Today I offer You my body.

May it be a temple dedicated to You, O Lord,

A place for You to live and reign.

May I be mindful of what I eat and drink;

May I be watchful of my sleep and rest.

Lord, right now I offer you my whole being

I present my mind, spirit and body to You.

Come and take me as a living sacrifice.

This day and everyday 

May I ever glorify and worship You!!!

Amen.

Let's all try to make it a fantastic week, dedicating our entire being to Him and praying that each and every thing we say and do be for His glory alone!

HOPE you have a Marvelous Monday!

{ Praying A-C-T-S }

A few weeks ago in a Bible study at church the gentlemen leading the group gave us a reminder of the ACTS way to pray.  I came across it again this morning in a devotion and thought I'd share it here. I've looked up some Bible verses to go along with each letter.

A

Begin our prayers with adoration to God, our most precious heavenly Father

C

The "C" stands for confession.

This is the part where we confess our sins....ouch!

T

Guess what the "T" stands for?

Did you guess "Thankful"?

S

The "S" stands for supplication....

"the action of asking or begging for something, earnestly or humbly"

Philippians 4:6

All four of the letters that make up "ACTS" have such a special meaning, but isn't the scripture that God gave me to represent the "S" just absolutely beautiful? Look how it so elegantly sums up all of the letters into one verse that just speaks to our hearts.

God tells me in His Word to be anxious for NOTHING.  

You know what that means?  

Deb.....

DO NOT WORRY about anything.

Just give it to God, in the precious Name of Jesus!

What a glorious way to start off this Tuesday morning of Easter week, 
letting God's sweet Word speak peace over my heart.

Ain't God good?

Oh, yes He is!!!

{ A Prayer for 2017 }

Holy God of Heaven and Earth,

I know that a thousand years are as a day to You, 

but we humans are bound up in time. 

As a new year is beginning, please teach me to...

    * Care more about people and less about money

    * Enjoy my work but not let it enslave me

    * And laugh more easily than I did last year

As I get ready for 2017, help me to remember things that are easy to forget...

    * That it might well be my last year

    * That some people are counting on me

    * And that You have things for me to do

Lord, with the things I have accumulated over the years, please let me...

    * Shake off the monotony of life

    * Try some new things in this new year

    * And mend some broken fences

And, Father of Mercies, please teach me in this new and unspoiled year to...

    * Lighten up and enjoy children, sunsets, reading, and long walks

    * Avoid quarrels and work at being a peacemaker in this world

    * And start next year with fewer regrets than I bring to 2017

I cannot know what this year will bring, 

and I am grateful for that! 

But help me...

    * Eat less junk food

    * Exercise and take better care of my mind, body and soul

    * And learn to enjoy the simple pleasures of life

Above all other things, Father, I want to be Your instrument for...

    * Easing somebody's too-heavy load

    * Relieving some sad person's misery

    * And introducing some lost soul to Jesus

Come what may in the year about to begin, 

may we live it for Your glory, 

within Your will, 

and to Your delight.

We pray in the name of Jesus.

Amen.

~~~Tim's Inspiration~~~

{ Wednesday's Words - Divine Appointment }

I had meant to share something with y'all before now, but I'm finding in my old(er) age that if I don't do something "right now", then it just doesn't get done.  Am I alone in this boat?!?!? ;-)  I'm sharing today because of a couple of things.  Our music minister challenged us SONday to look for divine appointments this week - a chance to share the Lord with others and then one of my devotions this week spoke of the very same thing.  I had to kinda laugh at how God got my attention so I'm thinking He REALLY wanted me to share these little stories with y'all!

A few weeks ago Pappy and I were at a thrift store and I had noticed a man and woman shopping there, too.  I smiled at them....I try to ALWAYS smile at people because......

well, just maybe it'll cheer them up if they're having a down day.  I was looking at some shoes and the  gentleman  walked up behind me and started talking about the prices at this particular store (which, are great, by the way) and as we chatted I learned that he had a malignant brain tumor and had recently had a gamma knife procedure. As usual, the conversation turned to how great our God is and the blessings He had poured out on this man and his family and I told him about the situation Pappy and I are in with his injury and job and how I felt God had ordained our meeting because it had blessed my heart to talk with him.  We got his name and told him we would be praying for him (please add Tom to your prayer list). Before we left the store, we had hugged and shared a precious Christian fellowship with somebody we had only just met.

Only a  couple of days after this, we were in another thrift store and I was looking through the skirts and a lady and I passed each other.....

and I smiled at her!

She smiled back and then I noticed she put her purse down on the floor and was digging through it looking for something.  I went on past her and down another rack of skirts and she came up behind me and started talking to me about prayer and how powerful it is.  She told me she had a tumor on her pituitary gland that turned out to be non-cancerous and she felt God had answered her prayer for healing.  She asked if I'd like a prayer card and she handed me a little bag that had a stack of at least 50 little cards and told me to choose one.  Here's the one I picked out.....

God truly blessed me with these encounters and I feel a lot of the reason it happened began with just smiling at these people.  My friend Cindy (Creations by Cindy) says that "Spirit knows Spirit".  It had nothing to do with me, but Christ in me that led to these conversations.

Often we're not even looking for the divine appointments.  All it took for these two was a smile and from that point on God took over.  Oh, wait.....

I kinda believe He was the one Who even prompted the smile in the first place!

Ain't God good?

Oh, yes He is!

{ Special Prayer Request }

The  blogging world brings together ladies (and gentlemen) from all over the country.....

and world!

We become "friends" and  share the ups and downs of life and there's such a camaraderie amongst us.

One of the BIG things we share is our belief in the power of prayer.

With that being said,

I want to ask all of you to pray for one of our sisters, Ms. Terri, and her husband, Mr. Joe.

He suffered a stroke yesterday and is in the hospital.

Please visit her and let her know you're thinking of her and offering her and her husband up in prayer!

Here is the link to her  blog:

Your Friend From Florida

Thanks, Prayer Warriors!!!

{ War Room }

I'm sure by now most of you have seen the movie, War Room.

If we're friends on Facebook, then you know that there was a free showing at our church last night, 

and many pews were filled!

I can't even begin to say how this movie touched me.

As Christians, I know we're all "big" on prayer,

but do we I really pray like we I should?

Do we I take advantage (in the positive sense) of the privilege to talk face to face with our my Lord and Savior?

Do we I stop and give thanks when our my prayers are answered,

even when it's not the way we I asked?

Oh, how I wish I could have seen something like this in my early years as a Christian,

especially in the beginning of our marriage.

(all images taken from the War Room Facebook page)

Now, I'm  trying to figure out where in this very small closeted house I can make myself a "war room"!!!

HOPE everybody has a Marvelous Monday!!!

{ I said a prayer for you today }

   For some reason I got this little prayer on my mind last night and thought I'd share it with y'all today.  

I cross stitched this for Pappy back in the day when I could still see to do things like that.

Ephesians 6:13-18

(The Message)

Be prepared. 

You’re up against far more than you can handle on your own. 

Take all the help you can get, 

every weapon God has issued, 

so that when it’s all over but the shouting you’ll still be on your feet. 

Truth, righteousness, peace, faith, and salvation are more than words. 

Learn how to apply them. 

You’ll need them throughout your life. 

God’s Word is an indispensable weapon. 

In the same way, prayer is essential in this ongoing warfare. 

Pray hard and long. 

Pray for your brothers and sisters. 

Keep your eyes open. 

Keep each other’s spirits up so that no one falls behind or drops out.

Happy Thursday!

Breathing in Grace,

Untie the knots.....

Dear God,

Please untie the knots

that are in my mind,

my heart and my life.

Remove the have nots,

the can nots and the do nots

that I have in my mind.

Erase the will nots,

may nots,

might nots that may find

a home in my heart.

Release me from the could nots,

would nots and

should nots that obstruct my life.

And most of all, Dear God,

I ask that You remove from my mind,

my heart and my life all of the 'am nots'

that I have allowed to hold me back;

especially the thought

that I am not good enough.

AMEN

~~~ Father Ronnie Knott of Rhodelia, Kentucky ~~~

HOPE this touches somebody as much as it did me!

Breathing in Grace,

Heal Me.....

Breathing in Grace,

The prayers go up.....

.....and the blessings come down!

Those are part of the lyrics to a little song that we used to sing in church when I was a young girl.  The song came to mind recently after our Sunday school teacher touched on the topic of prayer and "why do we pray?", then, I visited my friend, Ms. Mary, on her blog at Visits With Mary, and God had also prompted her to talk about praying.  So, I figured God was telling me to sit up and take notice! 
(if you're not already a friend of Ms. Mary, please pay her a visit.....
she's a precious lady!!!)

Here's the number one thing I realize about prayer.....

God answers ALL prayers!

Does that mean He answers them the way we want?

Absolutely not.

For instance.....

we have a family member who told me once that God didn't answer her prayers because she had prayed for a new car and didn't get it!

Now, that's somewhat humorous, but at the same time very sad because of the perspective she had about who God really is. He wants what's  best for us.  And, obviously He didn't think a brand new car was in her best interest.

I know you have heard it said that God answers our prayers in three ways.....

Yes.....

No.....

and, Wait!

When the answer is "wait".....

oh, how difficult that is.....

to practice patience and wait for God to answer our prayers.....

in HIS time, not ours!

I'm reminded of when Pappy was laid off from work for exactly a year.
2012 was a VERY.LONG.YEAR!

With interview after interview and rejection after rejection, God was telling us to wait.  Being a person of action, I wanted to fix the situation.  

And, I want to be perfectly honest with you all.
 I'm ashamed to admit this, but I've got to be transparent.

I finally reached a point where I didn't think God was even listening to my prayers.  I began to think it was somehow my fault that Pappy didn't have a job.....for whatever reason, God was punishing us because of some big major sin in MY life! I remember the day Pappy went on the interview for the job he has now.  I was terribly depressed that day.  It was a cold and dark and dreary December day.....and that wasn't just the weather, it was also the condition of my heart and attitude.  I had decided this was going to be just another broken dream when he would receive yet another rejection letter.  But, that's now how God works.  EVERYTHING that He does is for HIS glory.....

so that we can see HIS hand at work in our lives.

Who else could have ordained that Pappy would receive a job EXACTLY one year to the day when he lost his last one?

Only GOD!!!

And, who else would have answered our prayer that Pappy's job would be a sort of ministry?

Only GOD!!!

And, since our savings account was practically depleted during that year of unemployment and I had prayed that it wouldn't go below a certain amount and it didn't.....

down to the exact amount.....

who else could have known that?

Only GOD!!!

Does God need us to pray?

No.....

God needs absolutely nothing from us.

What He does want, though, is a personal relationship with each and every one of us who is His own......

and that relationship comes through prayer!

And, in our prayers, we're going to praise and honor Him.

We're going to give HIM thanks for EVERYTHING that happens in our lives.....

good and bad.....

as difficult as it is to say "thank you" for the bad stuff!!!

Now, I didn't mean to write a novel.

I just wanted to share my thoughts on what it means to me to pray.

It's not a "gimme, gimme" time to talk to the Lord.
Although, He does want to hear the "desires of our heart".

It's a time to just simply tell Him how much we love and adore Him.

And, when we have that intimate relationship with Him.....

then, He's gonna send more blessings down on us that we can even contain.....

especially, our hearts!!!

Breathing in Grace,

Deb

Free to Worship.....

Last Saturday morning, I sat outside on our front porch swing and did my devotions.  I've started to term that swing my "peaceful place" because when I get a bit stressed, I can go out there and sit and it seems the stress starts to melt away (and it doesn't hurt when Pappy sits there with me). As I sat there and pondered on it being the 4th of July weekend and what that "holiday" means to Americans, I thought about how blessed we are to live in a free country where we're able to take our Bible outside and sit and read it without the fear of possibly being arrested.  Oh, what a privilege to live in America.  I saw this picture yesterday and it brought a smile to face and reminded me of our freedom to worship......

One thing that can never be taken away from us,

no matter what should happen to America in the future.....

is prayer.  We can pray anytime, anywhere, even without anybody knowing it!!

And, speaking of the power of prayer......
I'm asking you to pray for my precious friend, Teresa.

She has Stage 4 pancreatic cancer.

She was in the hospital earlier in the week,

but was sent home with hospice.

Please pray for her and her family.

She knows the Lord.....

she has HOPE!

Breathing in Grace,

Deb

Pray believing.....

.....that God's gonna hear and answer our prayers!!!

I fell and hurt my knee about 15 months ago.  

It's steadily gotten worse and some days I can....could.....barely walk.

About a week ago, on a Friday, I prayed and told God that He was gonna have to work a miracle in my knee.  Then, on SONday morning, I asked our SS teacher to pray specifically for my knee.   I also put my request on a prayer card to be prayed over by our Prayer Ministry team.

Well, guess what?

Although I still can't bend it as well as I can the other one.....

the pain isn't there.  Before, if I walked too much thru stores with concrete floors, I could barely make it back to the car and would have to lift my leg into the car after I sat down.  This past Saturday, Pappy and I went shopping at  two different stores and my knee didn't bother me at all.

You might be wondering why I'm sharing this.

Well....it's because I have a confession to make.

Even though I've seen God answer prayer after prayer....

I doubted that He would heal my knee.

For some reason....

I started praying....

believing that He would heal my knee.  

I spoke it out loud....

even told Jess and Pappy and our boys that God was going to heal my knee.

I shared this with our SS teacher....

and he said something that really hit home with me.

He said that sometimes we "belittle God" by praying but not believing that He's gonna answer our prayers.

For that, I had to ask God to forgive me!!!

Mark 11:24 

I tell you, you can pray for anything, 

and if you believe that you’ve received it, 

it will be yours.

In HIS Most Precious L♥ve....and with mine, too!!!

Blessings,

Deb

God WILL provide!!

This past week, I've received several text, e-mail and Facebook messages....

....and phone calls....

....requesting prayer.  

This little "sign" is for all those (including myself) standing in need of prayer.

No matter how strong you think you are....

....how positive you feel your attitude is....

....how much you feel you don't have to ask for prayer for yourself....

....you are still gonna suffer from some kind of "anxiety" at some point in your life....

....if not daily!!!

In HIS Most Precious L♥ve....and with mine, too!!!

Blessings,

Deb

Teach me to pray!!!

Edited to add:
Special Prayer Request
Prayer Warriors....please pray for our niece, Shauna.
She hasn't felt well all week and after 2 trips to the ER, they have FINALLY determined that she has had a stroke and is in ICU.
PLEASE pray for this very special young lady.  She was involved in a car accident 20 years ago and suffered a spinal cord injury. Pappy and I consider her our "first" daughter, as we kept her lots of weekends when she was small.  I keep remembering a phone conversation I had with her a few days  before CHRISTmas and what she told me about how she had prayed for Pappy and me all during his unemployment and how much she loves us.  At our family CHRISTmas get-to-gether, I sat and talked with her most of the time.  She means the absolute world to me.....PLEASE pray for her and her Mom and Dad....and the doctors and nurses caring for her!!!

image credit

We're never to old to learn something new.....
....even a new way to pray!!!

In HIS Most Precious Love....and with mine!!!

Blessings,

Deb 

Prayer Hugs!!

I talked to a friend yesterday afternoon. 

Her husband has cancer.

  He has only a very short time left on this earth before Jesus brings him home to spend eternity with HIM.  

I used to be really hesitant to call people not knowing what to say at times like this. 

As I've gotten older, I've come to realize that often just hearing some one's voice is enough....

....and a simple "I'm sorry"....

....and to let them know you're praying for them. 

 My friend and I cried together on the phone,

 understanding each other's hearts from across the distance.

Romans 8:26

And the Holy Spirit helps us in our weakness. 

For example, we don’t know what God wants us to pray for. 

But the Holy Spirit prays for us with groanings that cannot be expressed in words.

In HIS Most Precious Love....and with mine, too!!!

Blessings,

Deb

Edited to add:

Jesus took my friend's husband home around 10:00 last night.  

Please keep her and the family in your thoughts and prayers.