Father, You are more than my words can express! Your Presence surrounds me daily and Your blessings overflow from Your hands! You are God and there isn't another who can hold a candle in comparison to You!

 

LORD, I pray I'll be watchful, bent before You in prayer! Even if "devoted to prayer" means while driving the car, walking down a hallway, or singing a song. May my mind be focused on You. Jesus I pray I'll be thankful. When the glass appears "half empty", I'll see it "half full".  Remove the spiritual cataracts from my eyes so I can see You are with me in this place.

 

Jesus, thanks for suffering.  Thanks for coming as a poor boy to an ordinary girl. Thanks for coming "fatherless" to a step-father who took You in as his own.  Thank You for enduring people who made fun of You! Even Your own brothers and sisters thought You were nuts!!  Thank You for enduring being spit on, beaten, whipped, and humiliated. I thank You because who am I to think I won't suffer too? You set the example and You over came! They killed You but You arose! You defeated death! Thank You for setting the example to not give up!

 

Today, we circle ourselves. I circle me. I circle my sisters in this prayer group. May we be women who set our hearts and minds to being devoted to prayer!  Give us strength not to give up on those who are lost. Give us strength to lift up our family members to be devoted to You. Give us this day what we need to suffer for You! We live in an imperfect world and the World hates You!  May we be the Watchwomen for our families, friends, churches, schools, communities. Help us to bury the "I can'ts" and focus on "I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength"! May we be women who open up and share about the God sightings in our lives! Jesus, we want to be the crazy women You answer prayers for because we are getting on Your nerves! The funny thing is ... That's the kind of women You want us to be!! May each of us be the woman You have designed us to be ... Crazy, Mad in love with You! Amen

 
Draw the Circle -- Day 11 First-Class Noticer

Jesus and Protocol

Have you ever read the devotional "Jesus Calling"? Well, here you go! It goes so well with the Draw the Circle book and the prayer the Squad prayed today! 

Oh how I wish sleep would come to my eyes! So I leave you with today's devotion from the Jesus Calling book:

September 26

Come to Me and listen! Attune yourself to My voice, and receive My richest blessings. Marvel at the wonder of communing with the Creator of the universe while sitting in the comfort of your home. Kings who reign on earth tend to make themselves inaccessible; ordinary people almost never gain an audience with them. Even dignitaries must plow through red tape and protocol in order to speak with royalty.

Though I am King of the universe, I am totally accessible to you. I am with you wherever you are. Nothing can separate you from My Presence! When I cried out from the cross, “It is finished!” the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. This opened the way for you to meet Me face to Face, with no need of protocol or priests. I, the King of kings, am your constant Companion.

The Sovereign Lord has given me an instructed tongue, to know the word that sustains the weary. He wakens me morning by morning, wakens my ear to listen like one being taught.
—Isaiah 50:4

Why spend money on what is not bread, and your labor on what does not satisfy? Listen, listen to me, and eat what is good, and your soul will delight in the richest of fare. Give ear and come to me; hear me, that your soul may live. I will make an everlasting covenant with you, my faithful love promised to David.
—Isaiah 55:2–3

When he had received the drink, Jesus said, “It is finished.” With that, he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.
—John 19:30

And when Jesus had cried out again in a loud voice, he gave up his spirit. At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. The earth shook and the rocks split.
—Matthew 27:50–51

Crazy Faith

God, You don't care about protocol! You baffle the minds by honoring people who take desperate measures to get to You! You are amazing!

 

Father, I want this crazy faith! I don't want people to think I'm sane. Being nuts about You is all that matters in this life. (I think people at work already think I'm crazy. Over the next few days, what will be will be. If I'm out of work a few days or weeks or months that is ok. It is all in Your hands. Its the same "scare" this time every year! What's the point in worrying? If the Government shuts down, You don't shut down. You are eternal! Father, I just know I'll need that faith to be a little bit more radical crazy!)

 

Jesus, thanks for the peace You give!

 

Father, in the name of our King Jesus, we come before You with confidence! Confidence that You are at work in ___'s life! May __ grow in You and You teach him/her about You in ways that only You can reach his/her heart and mind! (Switch names) Father, we circle ___ for his/her salvation. ___ is making choice displeasing to You and we know time is short. Jesus, please speed Your 4th day up!  Pursue ___ as if You are coming to set Your Kingdom up today! Send Your Spirit after him/her and don't let up on this "hot pursuit"! Not even You know when You are coming, Jesus, only the Father knows! We are circling for a divine intervention in ___'s life!  In Your name we pray this will be done because it is Your will no one perishes. Amen

 

Day 10 in Draw the Circle -- Crazy Faith

Wednesday, Tuesday, Monday Prayers

I'm a little behind this week!  My head has felt like a "ton of bricks"! The most recent prayer will be first (Wednesday's Prayer).  We are doing the Draw the Circle ... 40 Day Prayer Challenge by Mark Batterson.  The prayers will take "that" focus.

Wednesday 9/25/2013

(Change the underlined statement in the 4th paragraph to your personal dream! Feel free to share or not share yours.)

 

God of all Inspiration, You are Good and desire good things for us!

 

May I take every thought captive and make it obedient to You! Give me the ability to make each thought obedient to You, Lord Jesus.

 

I thank You, Lord, for this day. I thank You for the trust I have in You. Trust isn't something easy BUT You have proven Yourself to me over and over. Thank You for another day to walk with You and for the chance to tell someone one about Your faithfulness!

 

Each of us has a dream. (Mine is a house. A 3 bedroom, 2 1/2 bath, living room, kitchen, & utility room that is above the water run off.)  But I also have a spiritual dream!  I dream and long for the day ___ comes to know You, Jesus, as his/her Savior.  I dream and long for the day ___ declares You Lord of his/her life!  And I will ask, seek, knock, and circle as long as it takes!  I join my sisters circling the names they are lifting to You!  I also join them in circling their personal dreams!  Whatever they dream, I lift before You as well, Father. As always, we desire Your will.  We desire Your will in our lives. Amen

 

Day 9 in Draw the Circle

 

 

Tuesday 9/24/2013

 

God, the star breather, You are the VERY BIG God!

 

God, do I really believe You are THAT big? Do I really trust You? Jesus what am I holding onto that You want me to let go of? You and I have been through some tight spots together. Surely I trust You by now! I thought I'd ask You this today. My ole Friend, through thick and thin we've come. So, I ask You to search me. Test my faith to prove You true again and again, not for my benefit but for others to see! May I be a living testimony of Your faithfulness! Just let me jump in Your arms and let me squeeze Your neck tight. I'm no fool! I know You'll answer this request and I wanna be ready ...

 

Thank You for being the Source of my strength! Thank You for not abandoning me when I make choices that put me in tight situations. You don't always rescue me BUT You do stick with me growing me in You! Thank You!

 

Father, I don't always know what to pray nor how to pray for __ but that is ok! You know ___'s need! As long as it takes, we'll bring ___ to You! You the faithful, consistent God! May ___ come to know You as his/her God! May ___ come to know You as his/her God! We pray in the name of Jesus Your will be done! Amen

 

Day 8 in Draw the Circle 

 

Monday 9/23/2013

Today's prayer will have 3 blanks for 3 different names. Of course you can pray for as many as you like! Think of 1 lost person, 1 person who is good at posing a Christian walk (or a person who is "on the fence"), 1 person who is saved. When you reach that part of the prayer, this will make more sense!

Dear Jesus, You are the true Circle Maker! You, the Word of God, spoke the planets in to orbit around the sun! You have circled us from the moment You decided to create us!

Thank You for circling me! Thank You for never giving up on me!

Jesus, forgive me for telling You how to save people, when to save people, and for becoming frustrated with You when You don't do it my way! Help me to remember four things: 1) You are in control 2) You gave each of us free will to choose right from wrong AND to choose You or not 3) It's my job to pray to You for as long as it takes 4) It's the Holy Spirit's job to work on and within people. (I'm sure there is more Jesus needs to help me remember!)

Jesus, people matter to You! The lost matter to You! The posers matter to You! Even those who are safe in the sheep pin matter to You! Jesus, may we not give upon ___, ____, and ____! You love sinner, poser, and saint all the exact same! We are each made in Your image and its not Your desire for anyone of us to perish! In Your name, we lift up ___, ___, and ___. We pray God's will be done in their lives. Amen

Read Draw the Circle days 6 & 7

God, The First and The Last

LORD Almighty; King and Redeemer! YOU ARE THE FIRST AND THE LAST; apart from U there is no God! There is none like You! You are Supreme and in control!

LORD, write Your love on my heart! Write Your words in my mind! I'll put pen to paper to write what You reach me so I don't forget forget! "The shortest pencil is longer than the longest memory" and I do NOT want to forget You!

Father, we lift ___ up to You. "This is my prayer, lifted to You knowing You care so much more than I do. This is my prayer, in Jesus name, Your will be done, I humbly pray" ...

Isaiah 44:6-8; Day 5 in Draw the Circle; Petra's chorus to "This Is My Prayer"

⁶ “This is what the Lord says—
    Israel’s King and Redeemer, the LordAlmighty:
I am the first and I am the last;
    apart from me there is no God.
⁷ Who then is like me? Let him proclaim it.
    Let him declare and lay out before me
what has happened since I established my ancient people,
    and what is yet to come—
    yes, let them foretell what will come.
⁸ Do not tremble, do not be afraid.
    Did I not proclaim this and foretell it long ago?
You are my witnesses. Is there any Godbesides me?
    No, there is no other Rock; I know not one.”

God, the Great King!

For You, the LORD, is the great God, the great King above all gods!

 

My Shepherd, I am just one member of the flock in Your pasture who You care for. You don't always rescue me rom all struggles because some struggles are meant to teach me something and to make me stronger. LORD Jesus, give me grace to sustain, strength to stand firm, and the willpower to keep going! May my eyes be set on what You are doing in me and not focused on the circumstances around me.

 
Father, help me remember as we pray for ____ that You always seem to arrive four days late. First, You gave  ____ free will to choose; it takes time and love to bring a person around to giving up this gift. Second, its all about what You are doing within each of us! Teaching us persistence, keep praying, never give up on ____! Even after he/she is safe in Your grip, we are to continue praying!
 
Thank You, LORD, for what You are teaching us! We pray for Your plan to be done in Your timing and in Your way! Amen
 

Psalm 95:3-7

 
³ For the Lord is the great God,
    the great King above all gods.
⁴ In his hand are the depths of the earth,
    and the mountain peaks belong to him.
⁵ The sea is his, for he made it,
    and his hands formed the dry land.

⁶ Come, let us bow down in worship,
    let us kneel before the Lord our Maker;
⁷ for he is our God
    and we are the people of his pasture,
    the flock under his care.

Today, if only you would hear his voice,

 
 
and Day 4 in Draw the Circle

 

Be LORD of My Life

Almighty God, Your mysteries are more wonderful then I can imagine! There is no limit to Your greatness! There is no limit to what You can do nor where You can go!

 

Father, be Lord of my life. I relinquish everything to You. My time, talent, and treasure are all Yours! I desire to serve Your purpose. What can I do anyway? What do I know? You are the Supreme Being who's greatness my mind cannot understand! I am Yours. I give You all of me.

 
Lord, we continue to circle ___ in prayer. As wolves circle their prey, we will circle ____. We are hungry to see ___ living a life consecrated to You, Lord Jesus! Hear our hearts' cry! We trust ___ into Your merciful hands. Lord Jesus, by Your power and authority we pray God's will be done in ____'s life and in our lives. Amen
 

Job 11:7-9 

 

⁷ “Can you fathom the mysteries of God?
    Can you probe the limits of the Almighty?
⁸ They are higher than the heavens above—what can you do?
    They are deeper than the depths below—what can you know?
⁹ Their measure is longer than the earth
    and wider than the sea.

God Keeps The Planets in Orbit!

God, Most High, You alone are the LORD! You made the heavens and all its starry host! You keep the planets in orbit around the sun!

Father, forgive me. Forgive me for doubting Your ability to keep my life in orbit. I already trust You for the big things, I need to trust You for the "little" things. You, the Sovereign One, cares about every minute of my life!

Thank You, LORD, for choreographing my life! You have established every step I'll take! Grant it I have tried "my own" steps causing a mess of things. Thank You for Your patience with me! Thank You for Your grace!

Father, in the name of Jesus, we pray for strength to continue circling ____ in prayer. Compose ___'s life into a beautiful musical score who sings to You! You are the writer of ____'s story, may he/she be the beautiful story of Your amazing love! Most Supreme LORD, we pray Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. In Jesus name, Amen.

Nehemiah 9:6

You alone are the Lord. You made the heavens, even the highest heavens, and all their starry host, the earth and all that is on it, the seas and all that is in them. You give life to everything, and the multitudes of heaven worship you.

Day 2 in Draw the Circle

Circumcise My Heart

Over the next 40 days, we'll be working through the Draw the Circle book.  Hope y'all grabbed a copy! :)  Oh, we'll have scripture too! The prayers will contain bits of the daily readings. :)

 

Dear Father, You are God of gods! LORD of lords! Everything belongs to You!

 

Circumcise my heart. Cut away "my design" of how prayer should be answered. Cut around and remove "the me" getting in Your way. Change my prayers from ASAP to ALAT!

 

Thank You, Lord, for the little blessings. The little things You do that can be easily mistaken for luck, coincidences; almost unnoticeable.  They are small, BUT they are sweet! And each one says "I love you!" Thank You!

 

Jesus, so many times we get tired and want to give up praying. That's not what You want!  No matter how long it takes, we will not give up on ___. We pray to You, LORD Jesus, ___ will not be stiff-necked to the Holy Spirit's tender voice. We pray __ will turn toward You! We place ___ in our circle.  We will circle ___ in prayer as long as it takes (ALAT). In Your name, Jesus, we pray the Father's will be done. Amen

 

Deuteronomy 10:14-17

¹⁴ To the Lord your God belong the heavens, even the highest heavens, the earth and everything in it. ¹⁵ Yet the Lord set his affection on your ancestors and loved them, and he chose you, their descendants, above all the nations—as it is today. ¹⁶ Circumcise your hearts, therefore, and do not be stiff-necked any longer. ¹⁷ For the Lord your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great God, mighty and awesome, who shows no partiality and accepts no bribes.

In the Draw the Circle 40 Day Prayer challenge book, Batterson pg 10 "Too often we pray ASAP prayers -- as soon as possible. We need to start praying ALAT prayers -- as long as it takes."

Safe In the Arms of God

Most High, You are with me in ALL my troubles! You are my Rescuer! You are my Protector! You are my Deliverer!

Lord, be my refuge. May I trust You completely! I pray the moment things turn against me that instead of being over come with panic fear that I'll crawl on Your lap and say "nana-a-boo-boo u can't get to me!"

Jesus, even though I am human and will be afraid, because You have given me access to the Father, fear cannot control me! Thank You for giving this poor gal access to the Almighty, Most High! I am safe in the arms of God! Thank You, Jesus!

Jesus, ALL who trust You will be safe! Jesus, we pray ___ will make You his/her dwelling; that he/she will live in You! We pray ___ will trust You and when troubles come his/her way ____ will know exactly what to do! May each of know what to do ... Cry out to You!

Jesus, I think of each of my sisters and brothers right now, especially the ones in places where speaking Your name is a crime. My troubles are small compared to their's! Father, we pray for their protection now! Be with them through their persecution. Help them to hold fast to You! We pray Your will be done in us today! Amen

Psalm 91:9-16

⁹ If you say, “The Lord is my refuge,” and you make the Most High your dwelling,
¹⁰ no harm will overtake you, no disaster will come near your tent.
¹¹ For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways;
¹² they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.
¹³ You will tread on the lion and the cobra; you will trample the great lion and the serpent.

¹⁴ “Because he loves me,” says theLord, “I will rescue him; I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name.
¹⁵ He will call on me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble, I will deliver him and honor him.
¹⁶ With long life I will satisfy him and show him my salvation.”

Jesus, You Endured Much!

God, we glorify You by raising Your Name above all other's together! You command Your angels to camp around each one of us! Jesus, You deliver us when we call out!

 
Jesus, help me keep my focus on You! Remind me of what You endured on the cross. Your life was very interrupted for me! Remind me so I do not grow wear and loose heart. Help me not to become blinded by the troubles around me!
 
Jesus, thank You for hearing this poor girl's cry for help!  I was in despair and You reached out and grabbed me! You delivered me from drowning!
 
Lord Jesus, we bring to You today _____.  May ___ keep his/her tongue from evil and his/her lips from speaking lies.  We pray ___ will do what is right and good, that he/she will seek peace and pursue You! We pray Your will be done today in our lives. Amen

 

Psalm 34: 3, 6-7, 13-14

Glorify the Lord with me; let us exalt his name together. This poor man called, and the Lord heard him; he saved him out of all his troubles. The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear him, and he delivers them ... keep your tongue from evil and your lips from telling lies. Turn from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it.

 

Hebrews 12:2-3 (NIV84)

Let us fix our eyes o Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning it's shame, and say down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition form sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and loose hope.

 

Psalm 81:10

This is the final week in the Proverbs Online Bible Study "What Happens When Women Say Yes to God". The final entry for this round of of Blog Hops. I'm looking forward to the next study! "A Confident Heart" ... Visit Proverbs 31's site for how you can sign up! (Click here to visit site!!)

One of the topics to choose from this week is: "What does Psalm 81:10 mean to you (me)?"  To read it in just one version or translation, doesn't really do it justice! In closing, I'll include parallel looks at the verse. What came to my mind is a conversation that took place this past Saturday in Walmart.

I took Mom to Walmart to get a few things. As we were making our trek across the store, we saw some "friends". I knew the mother better than the daughter with her. As I listened to the daughter talk about her life, I could hear in her words she doesn't have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. Her divorce took place 10 years ago, she still desires justice, she feels like all her hopes and dreams are still shattered, that she won't forgive--can't forgive because justice hasn't been served, she wants him to feel as miserable as she feels. Anger, bitterness just gushed from her. 

The Holy Spirit was like "Vivian, you've always said 'I don't know what my life would have been like if I hadn't had God; if I hadn't had a godly support system'. Well, here's what your life would look like now without Me."

Divorce wasn't the Egypt God rescued me from. A horrible marriage was part of the Egypt. Know what my Egypt was? Rejection! Life without a loving father! The lies that "I'm not good enough"! 

God has shown me so much love! He has poured out every ounce of His energy into accepting me, being my Father, and showing me I am good enough! (Ok, not every ounce of His energy BUT I think you understand what I mean by that phrase!)

All He was waiting for me to do was to open up to Him! He would have blessed me in my teen years and early 20s if I had just surrendered to Him and opened up for Him to pour out His blessings! 

God rescued me from a very personal Egypt! When I opened the mouth of my heart, He poured Himself into me! He has blessed me with:

1) A loving physical family. My mother, sister, brother, sister-in-law, my 2 precious children.

2) A loving spiritual family. My home church, BGFirst. My brothers and sisters in other churches. Especially, my down the road, over the creek, up the hill Sister in Christ. 

3) He has blessed me with a job, car, and a few other things too.

4) Peace. The ability to forgive and surrender my right to justice to Him! 

Know what? He's not finished! 

The encounter in Walmart wasn't just for me. It was for her too! I'm praying for her! I'm praying she'll allow God to rescue her from her Egypt! I'm praying she'll open the mouth of her heart and allow God to pour Himself into her! 

Yes, she's been divorced 10 years. I've been single again for 8. Know what the difference is? 1) Divorced represents brokenness 2) Single Again represents completeness. I am complete, made whole in Christ!

NLT: For it was I, the Lord your God,   who rescued you from the land of Egypt. Open your mouth wide, and I will fill it with good things.

MSG: I’m God, your God, the very God who rescued you from doom in Egypt, Then fed you all you could eat, filled your hungry stomachs.

NCV: I, the Lord, am your God, who brought you out of Egypt. Open your mouth and I will feed you.

LB: For it was I, Jehovah your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt. Only test me! Open your mouth wide and see if I won’t fill it. You will receive every blessing you can use!

Fix Our Eyes On Our Deliverer!

LORD, my God, I will give You glory at ALL times! Jesus, Your praise will ALWAYS be on my lips! I cried out to You, seeking You and You answered me! You delivered me from all my fears!

 

Father, I know all I have belongs to You! Create in me the willingness to worship You with the things You have blessed me with! I pray my eyes will be fixed on You, Jesus, and You alone! My focus, my worship on You!

 

Thank You, Jesus, for hearing me! Thank You for saving me from the awful place I was in! A place of fear, doubt, rejection.

 

Jesus, You are Good! You are our Deliverer! We pray in Your name ____ will taste and see for him/herself how good You are!  ____ will find blessings of peace, acceptance, and fulfillment of every longing when he/she chooses You! We pray, Jesus, the Father's will be done! Amen

 

Psalm 34:1, 4, 8, 9 (NIV, MSG, NLT)

 

I will extol the Lord at all times; his praise will always be on my lips. I sought the Lord, and he answered me;    he delivered me from all my fears Taste and see that the Lord is good;    blessed is the one who takes refuge in him. Fear the Lord, you his holy people,
    for those who fear him lack nothing.

 

I bless God every chance I get;my lungs expand with his praise God met me more than halfway,he freed me from my anxious fears.Open your mouth and taste, open your eyes and see—
how good God is.Blessed are you who run to him.Worship God if you want the best;
worship opens doors to all his goodness.

 

I will praise the Lord at all times.    I will constantly speak his praises. I prayed to the Lord, and he answered me.    He freed me from all my fears. Taste and see that the Lord is good.    Oh, the joys of those who take refuge in him! Fear the Lord, you his godly people,
    for those who fear him will have all they need.

 

Hebrews 12:2 (NIV)  fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

God Doesn't Disappoint!

Almighty God! Let me just dwell on Your name -- ALL MIGHTY! Just as you proved Yourself to the saints who came before us, You prove Yourself to us!  When we cry out, You hear us and are quick to rescue!

 

Father .... take this time to search each of us.  Search me.  Take this moment to look and see if there is any selfishness in me?  Do I make things about me?  My justice? My rights? My way?  Search me and replace "me" with You!

 
Thanks be to You, God, for Your indescribable gift! Your love for me is AMAZING!
 
Jesus, we join with each other in bringing ___ to the Father.  We pray we will be living proof of Your faithfulness.  May ___ see You at work in our lives and know You desire to be his/her God too!  In You ____ can trust and won't every be disappointed!  We pray in Your name .. Amen
 

Psalm 22:4-5

 
(NIV) ⁴ In you our ancestors put their trust;
    they trusted and you delivered them.
⁵ To you they cried out and were saved;
    in you they trusted and were not put to shame.
 

(NCV) ⁴ Our ancestors trusted you;
    they trusted, and you saved them.
⁵ They called to you for help
    and were rescued.
They trusted you
    and were not disappointed.

 
2 Corinthians 9:15

(NIV) Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift!

 

(NCV) Thanks be to God for his gift that is too wonderful for words.

My Knight In Shining Armor!

LORD, my GOD! LORD, my DADDY! You reached down from Heaven and rescued me! You rescued me from powerful enemies--thoughts, worries, concerns, situations beyond my control-- all stronger than me! YOU delight in me and rescue me!!

 
Father, I can't do this life on my own! Pour out Your strength in me! Give me what I need to face today! Help me to trust You with all my burdens!
 
Jesus, thank You for (name a sister in Christ, from anytime in your life). She is a blessing! She's much more courageous than she gives herself credit for.  Her faith is an inspiration to me! Thank You for bringing her into my life!

 

My Knight In Shining Armor! In Your name, Jesus, we bring _______ to You! Reach down with all Your strength and rescue _____ from darkness and despair!  You delight in all Your creation and we know its Your desire to deliver _____.  By the power and authority in the name of Jesus, we pray the Father's will be done. Amen
 

2 Samuel 22:17-20

 
(NIV)¹⁷ “He reached down from on high and took hold of me;
    he drew me out of deep waters.
¹⁸ He rescued me from my powerful enemy,
    from my foes, who were too strong for me.
¹⁹ They confronted me in the day of my disaster,
    but the Lord was my support.
²⁰ He brought me out into a spacious place;
    he rescued me because he delighted in me.
 

(NLT)¹⁷ “He reached down from heaven and rescued me;
    he drew me out of deep waters.
¹⁸ He rescued me from my powerful enemies,
    from those who hated me and were too strong for me.
¹⁹ They attacked me at a moment when I was in distress,
    but the Lord supported me.
²⁰ He led me to a place of safety;
    he rescued me because he delights in me.

Help Me to Strive for Your Perfection!

We are cheating today! Today's prayer will start word for word from the scripture!  It says it all!

 

O Lord, I will honor and praise your name, for you are my God. You do such wonderful things! You planned them long ago, and now you have accomplished them.

 

Lord Jesus, you said "But you are to be perfect, even as your Father in heaven is perfect." Now, I got to confess, there's no way I can be perfect on my own!  I do fail in keeping my word from time to time.  I even let an ill thought come from my mouth!  Lack of forgiveness. Lack of mercy. Quick to anger or frustration. I have a long list I could talk to You about! Jesus, I need Your help! Pour out Your Spirit on me to teach me, to guide me, to correct me.  Give me the strength for just today and we'll talk about it again tomorrow!

 

I thank You for Your GRACE! When I don't measure up, You love me anyway!

 

Jesus, in Your name we bring to the Father _______. Draw ______ to You and create in him/her a desire to seek Your perfection.  Your perfection is light! It doesn't require the human standards of "everything in order" inside the house.  It doesn't require a certain hair style, nor brand of clothes.  All Your perfection requires is the Blood of Jesus on our hearts.  We pray, Father, ____ will seek Jesus to be his/her Lord.  We pray this according to Your perfect plan for ___. Amen

 

Isaiah 25:1(NLT)

25 O Lord, I will honor and praise your name,
    for you are my God.
You do such wonderful things!
    You planned them long ago,
    and now you have accomplished them.

 

Matthew 5:48 (NLT)

⁴⁸ But you are to be perfect, even as your Father in heaven is perfect.

#FreshVision

It's Thursday! Time for the weekly blog hop with the Proverbs 31 Online Bible Study!!

Sound excite? Normally, I would be very excited but I'm feeling under the weather. I hope this post will convey my true feelings! I AM EXCITED!

I attend a not so mega church (about 110 average) here in little ole Bowling Green, KY. About 19 months ago, we got this crazy new pastor. He came in and went right to work. Found data on our area, data about the unchurched. He put together a  refocus committee, to take a good look at our church. This past summer, he had us do the unthinkable! We quit having Sunday School on Sunday Mornings!!

I have to admit ... I was a little leery of this move because I didn't know when my kids would get to attend with me working a day job and then another at night. After the first couple of Sundays of not having to be at church by 9:45 ... Fell in love with the new schedule!! All "Sunday School" for kids and teens moved to Wednesday Nights. We have made the shift from "Wednesday Night Sunday School" to "Wednesday Night LIFE Groups". There is one LIFE Group for adults on Sunday mornings, a men's LIFE Group and women's too that meet twice a month, an adult LIFE Group on Monday and on Thursday.

What does this have to do about fresh vision? EVERYTHING! I was more worried about me and my kids than about reaching the lost. 

By the end of Summer Break, I was able to quit my night job so I could take my kids to their LIFE Groups on Wednesday night! I'm so thankful for that!

But this still isn't the fresh vision ... 

The fresh vision is reaching as many people as possible for Christ! 

We have started a Capital Campaign to raise funds to add onto our current building. After the new structure is in place the current sanctuary will be remodeled into a Children's Worship area and the current "fellowship hall" and classrooms will become the Teen Worship area!! 

Here's the thing. This isn't the field of dreams where "if you build it they will come". No. This is different. This is "if you don't build it no one is going to stay". Church buildings are tools and only tools. With more space, we can invite AA or NA to meet in our building, we can offer it Boy Scout troops. Maybe even on day participate in the Upward program! With the space we can offer ourselves to our community! 

Even our name has changed! By accident but it works. We used to be called First Church of the ....... Over the years, because there are several First Churches on our district, it became know as BGFirst. Now our logo has it as BGFirst. When I first saw it ... It hit me!

Bowling Green First. Bowling Green 1st! Our name (to me) means Bowling Green comes first! Wait ... Jesus comes first! Bowling Green comes first in front of us. In order to reach my hometown for Christ, my needs have to come 2nd. I have to have a heart for people! I have to capture God's vision to love those who are on the outside of His Kingdom and being them in with His love. It's NOT about me! It's about Jesus!

God's Way Is Best!

LORD GOD, Your law is perfect! You instructions revive my soul and Your directions do not leave me guessing which way I should choose! God's way or my way? Your decrees are perfect and don't land me in trouble! YOUR WAY IS BEST!

LORD, bend me to Your desire. Fill me Holy Spirit with the desire to please God and God alone! No one signs my "to do list" but You!

LORD Jesus, it's Thursday. Almost Friday! Thank You for Friday!! As I look forward to the week end, Friday reminds I'm to look forward to Your return! Thank You for hope! Thank You for Your perfect promise!

Jesus, we bring to the Father, in Your name _______ . We pray Your Spirit will instruct and direct ______ and revive his/her soul with Your trustworthy Word. We pray God's will be done today in us and through us. In Your name we pray . Amen

Psalm 19:7

(NIV)The law of the Lord is perfect   refreshing the soul. The statutes of the Lord are trustworthy, making wise the simple.

(NLT)The instructions of the Lord are perfect, reviving the soul. The decrees of the Lord are trustworthy, making wise the simple.