Isaiah 43 - "When He Was On The Cross, I Was On His Mind"

Last night as I was praying for a family who lost a loved one suddenly the Lord brought Isaiah 43 to my mind. The first seven verses of this chapter are about how God's love is always with us. It is with us in the 'good' days and it is with us in the 'bad' days. His love is forever. It is where we find the strength to go on after losing a loved one. His love is where comfort and peace are found when the 'what ifs' come into our minds. Just as Sharon sang on Sunday, "when He was on the cross, I was on His mind." God gave His Son Jesus to die for all. I know I do not want His death to go in vain. I strive to walk in obedience to Him so He will be pleased. I desire to see more people not only come into relationship with Him but then to die to self so He is the Lord over their lives. When a loved one dies, there are so many emotions we go through but His love is there for us. We do not have to fear anything when He is our Lord. He will provide all our needs. He will provide the needed finances, peace, wisdom on decisions that must be made at such a time, etc. Plain and simple. He will provide. He provided for the Israelites as they went through the wilderness and as they passed through the Red Sea. He loved them and desired to see them love Him back. The same can be said for all today. He loves us so greatly and desires to see us love Him back. He desires to be our strength in the times of storms. He desires for us to not be fearful even when the storms come in our life. Verse five of Isaiah 43 reads, "Do not be afraid, for I am with you..." He never leaves us but is always right there to give us comfort, peace, strength or whatever we need. The enemy may try to cause problems in the middle of such circumstances as a sudden death. He knows the emotions are high and may try to play on them. But when we are strong in our faith we know the Father's love is covering us and protecting us. We must be on guard against any door the enemy may try to open and make sure to keep it 'locked' with prayer and God's Word in our heart.

Dear Jesus,
Thank You for giving comfort and peace to our dear friends. Thank You for loving them so greatly through these tough days. Father, I thank You we were there for them yesterday and for the words You gave us to share. Lord, today is the first day they woke up without their loved one on this earth. I pray for Your peace to come down upon them in a mighty way. I pray Your strength will enable them to stand firm against the enemy. Father, I not only pray for this family but also for the families who are hurting from recent deaths. I continue to pray for Jeremy's family who are dealing with many firsts. May You continue to strengthen each one on their new walk without their loved one. Lord, I also pray for a richness in my spirit to be more loving. I pray for a different, new way to come down upon me today to be You to others. May You cleanse me so I can show more of Your actions, words and attitude today. Thank You Jesus for being My Protector. Amen.

John 15:9-10 - "Jesus Loves Me"

I was awake throughout the night with the words to "Jesus He Loves Me" going through my mind. I kept asking God if there was someone I was to pray for but I was the only one who He put on my mind. He reassured me He loves me so greatly that He will never leave me. He gave me reassurance that He loves me through the 'good' times and the 'bad times.' He loves me through the fun times with friends such as this weekend and the times where I am hurting. He love me when I am walking in obedience and He loves me when I fail to do so. Plain and simple. He loves me. I honestly do not know how people get through life without Him. Yesterday as I was preparing to take communion I prayed for a cleansing in my spirit and thought about those who have never taken the step to be in relationship with Him. It must be a very lonely life to not have Him to talk to. I thought about how He is my life. I cannot imagine doing life without Him. It must be pretty scary to not have Him being Your Guide. I also thought about those who pretend they are 'ok' when they are falling apart. Some are 'believers' yet they have not taken the step to being sold out to Him. If they would take that step, freedom to worry would be overtaken by His love. 

Jesus, He loves me, He loves me, He is for me
Jesus, how can it be, He loves me, He is for me

As I allow His love to flow in and through me He becomes greater in my spirit. His love is powerful. It is greater than anything on this earth. People cannot love in the same depth as He does but when we do love with His love we become more like Him. He is the example we are to follow in loving people. What a different world we would be living in if more people would love with His love. The enemy would not have such an impact on our world if more people would love with God's love. I desire to love more like He does. The desire of my heart is for people to see/hear Him instead of me. I want Him to be greater in me. The only way for that to happen is to be in His Word more, be in prayer more and be more willing to walk in obedience. 

Dear Jesus,
Thank You for loving me so greatly. Thank You for walking in obedience to Your Father as You died on the cross for our sins. Thank You for loving me even when I fail. Father, cleanse me of anything that may separate us. Fill me and empower me with more of You so Your love oozes out of me. May You be my words, actions and most of all my attitude throughout this day. Protect me on the roads and bind the enemy out of my life. Thank You Jesus for being My Guide. Amen.

II Timothy 1:7; Ephesians 6:10-18 - "Bulletproof"

The Lord woke me up early to pray for pastors and their congregations. He also woke me up with the song "Bulletproof" going through my mind. I love how Saturday nights/Sunday mornings are normally set aside by Him with these in my prayers. Unless one is a pastor or grew up in a pastor's family there is no idea on what they go through as they minister. There is so much joy in pastoring but there also is so much heartache. As a pastor ministers they take on people's problems in a deeper way than others in a body of believers. The hurts and pains of their flock may not be known to others or if it is known, details or the depth of the situation may not be known. Some pastors are told things no one else has a clue about. It is a privilege to pastor but it also can take a toll on every aspect of one's life. 

No fear no doubt can shoot me down
I got my armor now
No fear no doubt gonna shoot me down
Now I’m bulletproof because of you You 
Because of You

Fear and doubt are things every person experiences at one time or another. But as the song goes when we have our armor on, the arrows from the enemy cannot hit us. We are "Bulletproof" as we wear His armor. At times the enemy will work through people to try to shoot us down. He also will work through things such as weariness from being overworked, not being in His Word or on our knees enough, health issues, break down in relationships, etc. Believers, especially pastors, must be aware of what opens doors to the enemy in our own life. We must pray against those open doors. We must pray II Timothy 1:7 over ourselves. "God did not give us a spirit that makes us afraid but He gave us a spirit of power, love and self-control." The Holy Spirit empowers all of His children to stand against the enemy. The empowerment comes from living in the Lord's presence. One must give up the idea of not needing Him and allow Him to overtake their entire being. His empowerment comes through dying to self and living in His Spirit. 

Dear Jesus,
Thank You for our time with friends yesterday and for the beauty of Your creation. Thank You for the day that is ahead today...Your Day. As You directed my prayers this morning, may bodies of believers come together unified, ready to worship and ready to hear the message You have for them. May pastors who go into the pulpit this morning be enriched by Your Holy Spirit so people will see/hear You instead of them. May pastors be filled with Your Holy Spirit so they are in tune to people's needs before they are even spoken. You told me this morning to pray for pastors to preach in a different, new way today. I pray for all believers, but especially pastors to be "Bulletproof" as they are dressed in Your Armor. Father, I pray for pastors of little ones and teens to be ready with Your answers for the questions asked of them today. I also pray for pastors of families for Your strength as they minister to some hurting people. I pray for the pastor who is going back to his congregation for the first time today since his miraculous experience with dying and being brought back. I pray for he and his church to realize You have great days in store for them. I pray for the evangelists that are in the pulpit this morning to minister to not only the people but to the pastors in the churches they are serving. I pray for open ears, eyes and hearts for all who hear Your Word spoken today. Just as I pray for myself I pray for others to pray for themselves for a cleansing so there is nothing between us and You. I pray for more of You to ooze out of me so people will know You are the One who directs my life. I pray against any open doors the enemy may try to open today in my life. I pray they will not only be closed but they will be locked up tight from him. Thank You for being My Bulletproof. Amen.

Psalm 46:10 - "Thy Will"

The Lord woke me up during the night several times to pray for a man who gives unselfishly of himself to serve Him. He travels many days out of the year for many miles to spread the love of Jesus. This man has made such an impact on my life in so many ways. He has taught me what it means to go deeper in my relationship with the Lord which gave me a spiritual healing. He also has been an instrument for the Lord for a physical healing in my body. There have been times where I have been so discouraged and he would send me a text or I would read something he posted on Facebook that encouraged me which gave me an emotional healing. God is using him in mighty ways in thousands of lives. I pray for him often but when I saw his post yesterday about being weary after experiencing a hard week of spiritual warfare my prayers increased. I cannot do what Brother Dan does with traveling all across the country but I can be here praying for him and his team. That is what God has called me to do. Intercessory prayer is so important for everyone but especially those in full-time ministry. I was blessed yesterday in finding out one of my friends from Ohio was woke up the night before by the Holy Spirit to pray for me. I had a tough night with pain and the Lord knew I needed that prayer. Sometimes we do not know who or when the Holy Spirit has someone praying for us while other times we are given the privilege of that knowledge. There are so many times the Holy Spirit will wake me up to pray for someone that I have no idea why but that does not matter. I am His servant and strive for obedience. I am so grateful for the knowledge that He uses me in such a way to bless others. As I prayed for Brother Dan throughout the night the Lord kept bringing "Still" by Hillary Scott to my mind. Specifically these words...

You're parting waters
Making a way for me
You're moving mountains that I don't even see
You've answered my prayer before I even speak
All You need for me to be is still

God told me to pray for Brother Dan's 'mountains' to be moved. He told me there are some pretty bigs ones but none are bigger than Him. He also told me to share this with him. Sometimes when He tells me to share something with someone I am hesitant because they are not believers or I am afraid the message I am to give seems too far out of the water. This time there is no hesitation because I know the message will be not only accepted but embraced. 

Dear Jesus,
Thank You for the privilege of being a prayer warrior. You are so awesome in the way You wake me to pray for people and for waking people to pray for me. Lord, fill me with more of You so people will see/hear You instead of me today. Enable me to be Your servant in a different, new way. Thank You for the safe trip for our friends. I pray a blessing over there time here. Thank You for bringing them to visit which brings a little bit of 'home' to me. Once again, I pray for Brother Dan and his ministry team to be blessed in mighty ways...move their mountains! Thank You Jesus for being My Mountain Mover! Amen.

Philippians 2:5-11 - "Your Great Name"

The words to "Your Great Name" were going through my mind every time I woke up during the night and then again this morning...

All the weak find their strength at the sound of your great name
Hungry souls receive grace at the sound of your great name
The fatherless—they find their rest at the sound of your great name
The sick are healed and the dead are raised at the sound of your great name

Yes! That last line is so true. I have experienced healing in my physical body many times but the greatest healing is experienced in the spiritual body. When one gets to the end of themselves and allows the Lord to be the Lord of Lords over their life, there is a spiritual healing. No longer are there doubts on what to do. No longer are there the 'what ifs' or the 'if I would of' but instead is listening to His voice and walking in obedience. 

Jesus,
The name of Jesus,
You are high and lifted up and all the world will praise your great name

Scripture tells us God exalted Jesus and gave Him "the name that is above every name." It also tells us "every knee should bow...every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord..." (Philippians 2). When we walk by His example, we will take on His nature. That means we will have the desire in our heart to be obedient to Him just as He is obedient to His Father. He will be praised through our living a life for Him. He will be praised when we treat others as He treats us, with His love. He will be praised in seeing us humble ourselves before not only Him but others. 

Dear Jesus,
Thank You for this song and the words from Paul in Philippians today. Father, I desire to praise You with my words and my actions. I desire to be obedient to You in every way possible. Cleanse me of anything that may be between You and I. Fill me with Your love to the point it oozes out of me. Be my different, new way today. Oh how I desire more of You. Father, today I am praying for those who have lost loved ones this last week. I am praying for the Hignight's, Bannworth's, Greathouse's and Gilbert's to feel Your presence and comfort during these tough days. I also pray for Wanda as she is recuperating from surgery. I pray for safe travels for our friends who are visiting us this weekend. Lord, most of all I pray for those who are not in relationship with You to find You and those in relationship with You to go deeper. Thank You Jesus for being My Lord of Lords. Amen.

Deuteronomy 5:32-33 - "My Tribute"

I woke up this morning with these words going through my mind...

To God be the glory
To God be the glory
To God be the glory
For the things He has done
With His blood, He has saved me
With His power, He has raised me.
To God be the glory
For the things he has done

I love how the second verse goes...

Just let me live my life
And let it be pleasing, Lord to Thee
And should I gain any praise,
Let it go to Calvary.

Yes! The desire of my heart is to live in the desire of His heart. I desire to do as He wants of me. Many times the Lord calls us to do something but if it is not our idea we balk at it. We need to live in His presence so anything He calls us to do will automatically be a 'yes' to Him. Even if we cannot understand it or be able to comprehend how the outcome will be we need to be ready to say 'yes' to it. I remember a day where I would argue with God when He called me to do something. I am thankful those days are over. Recently He called me to do something and He even told me I would be rejected the first time. He told me when rejection happened I was to try again. That is where I am now. Waiting on His time for the 'try again' to happen. I am thankful He warned me I would be rejected because I would have taken it personally had He not. I am also thankful I am not manipulating the situation but instead am waiting on His timing. There is so much peace in living in His presence. I no longer have to second guess things but instead just listen to Him. There is no longer a feeling of not knowing what to do because He tells me. When He does not reveal something in my time, it is OK because I know His time is the best time. As I walk in obedience to Him, I am blessed in abundance. Deuteronomy 5 ends with...

Matthew Henry writes, "The only way to be happy, is to be holy. Say to the righteous, it shall be well with them. Let believers make it more and more their study and delight, to do as the Lord God hath commanded." My mind is wandering this morning to thoughts about how different this world would be if there were more people living in the presence of God, in His holiness, listening to Him instead of satisfying self. I know my life has changed drastically since I took the step. I pray for more believers to get to the end of themselves and allow Him to work in and through them.

Dear Jesus,
Thank You for this song and Scripture this morning. Thank You for loving me so greatly. Thank You for the pain lessening in my physical body. Thank You for the sunshine today that makes Your creation so beautiful. Father, I come before You this morning and ask for a cleansing in my spirit of anything that may be between You and I. I also ask for a filling in my spirit with more of You. May You be my words, actions, and especially my attitude today so all who see/hear me will see/hear You. I pray for all believers to get to the point where You are more than their Savior but become the Lord of Lords and King of Kings in their heart. Thank You Jesus for being My Holiness. Amen.

Deuteronomy 6 - "With All My Heart"

The first nine verses of Deuteronomy 6 are full of richness on the importance of living in fear of God. This chapter begins with Moses specifying “the commands, decrees and laws the Lord your God directed me to teach…” Per Matthew Henry, “the ‘commandments’ seem to denote the moral law, the ‘statues’ the ceremonial law, and the ‘judgements’ the law by which the judges decided.”  Henry continues “The fear of God in the heart will be the most powerful principle of obedience.” The way to accomplish this is by loving Him with our whole being (verse 5). This means not just in words but by our actions too. Verses six through nine show us how to accomplish holiness. We must mediate on His Word. We also must teach our children and have His Word on our lips and in our heart at all time. When we live in such a way, we are living a life of holiness. Verse eighteen of this chapter reads:

18 Do what is right and good in the Lord’s sight, so that it may go well with you and you may go in and take over the good land the Lord promised on oath to your ancestors, 19 thrusting out all your enemies before you, as the Lord said.

This verse is one that many will read and question. Some read it to mean when you do as you should life will not have any issues. That is not the case. We must remember James 1:2-3 where we are told to be joyful in trials because that is where perseverance is found. We know the Lord takes us deeper as we go through things on this earth. Verse nineteen shows us He will enable us to stand against our enemies. Many times the enemy is in the middle of our trials. He finds a way to get in and plays havoc. It is only through a deep love for the Lord and our obedience that His strength will enable us to stand against the enemy. The shoes of peace from Ephesians 6 are what we need to have on every day. The enemy does not like peace nor does he have peace. The Lord is the One who knows peace and enables us to experience it even in the midst of a storm.

Dear Jesus,

Thank You for the way You wrapped me in Your love yesterday as I dealt with the pain. Thank You for lesser pain and for Doc's count being lower today. Thank You for providing everything we need. Father, as I read Deuteronomy 6 again this morning I stopped and pondered on verse seven with children. We are in contact with so many who do not have You talked about in their home. I pray for continued opening of doors into these lives. I pray our words will make a difference for them. I think of the ones who have moved away and pray they have someone in their lives to continue what we started. I pray for all of 'our' children to know we love them because we love You so greatly. May they follow by our example. Lord, over the last few days there have been so many people hurting because of the death of loved ones. I pray for Your comfort and peace for them. I also pray for my dear friend Deb who is hospitalized. I pray for a healing in her body. Encourage her to be Jesus to her caretakers. Once again I pray for retention for my exam. I pray for this pain to not be a distraction as I study. Fill me to overflowing with You so anyone I come in contact with will see/hear You. Thank You Jesus for being My One and Only. Amen.

Ephesians 6; James 1 - "Old Church Choir"

I went to bed with these words going through my mind and woke up with them doing the same....

When the valleys, that I wander
turn to mountains that I can climb
Oh, you are with me, never leave me
Oh cause there ain't nothing there ain't nothing gonna steal my joy

The Lord knew I needed the reminder that He is always with me no matter what is happening in my life. I cannot allow the 'bad' things of life steal my joy. Instead I have to find ways for Him to be glorified through them. I have to allow Him to work in and through me as I deal with whatever comes my way. I must say I am feeling pretty worn right now. It seems like just when one thing is over another starts. In fact, in today's situation the one wasn't over before the next one started. I need to feel His presence in a mighty way to stay joyful. These attacks are coming too close and too fierce. I need to be filled up with more of the Holy Spirit to be empowered to stand firm in my full armor. Paul wrote in Ephesians 6...

10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11 Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. 12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. 13 Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. 14 Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15 and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16 In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17 Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. 18 And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people. 19 Pray also for me, that whenever I speak, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel, 20 for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should.

Belt of truth...breastplate of righteousness...shoes of the Gospel of peace...shield of faith...helmet of salvation...sword of the Spirit along with prayer. I need to be dressed in these at all time in order to not allow my joy to be stolen. James wrote in the opening chapter of his book about how we are to be during trials and temptations. Verse two tell us we are to "Consider it pure joy...whenever you face trials of many kinds..." (NIV). Joy...joy...joy...I keep repeating this to reinforce it in my spirit. When I allow God to work in and through me...when I keep my joy through the trials...then I will be blessed in abundance by Him.

Dear Jesus,
Thank You for this song and the reminders that come along with it. Father, I am so tired of fighting these attacks yet I know I cannot give up. Thank You for the prayer shawl from the Elkins Church. When I wrap it around my shoulders I feel the prayers that were given over it for me. Lord, enable me to be joyful through this pain today. Make my faith deeper through it. Fill me to overflowing with more of You. Thank You Jesus for being My Joy. Amen.

Psalm 33 - "Good, Good Father"

Psalm 33 is rich in encouragement for people to live in His promises. It encourages people to desire to live in His empowerment. When we do, we will receive blessing upon blessing. There is always something to praise the Lord for. Always. Even in 'bad times' there is something to praise Him for. We can have His joy when going through 'bad times' if we allow His supernatural empowerment to take over in our spirit. I love how Matthew Henry describes it. "Holy joy is the heart and soul of praise, and that is here pressed upon the righteous. Thankful praise is the breath and language of holy joy." Woo hoo! One has to choose joy if they truly desire it. I strive to have 'holy joy' no matter what is happening in my little world. God created humans with a purpose. I believe my purpose in life is for Him to shine in and through me 24/7. Always. Some say this is not humanly possible but I believe when we strive for it, He will bless us and be blessed in the process. Yesterday was a great example of verses eighteen and nineteen being fulfilled in my life. He came to my rescue through a lady who did what many would have not. She found my phone in the middle of a busy street and called the last number to return it. He not only provided this upright person but He also protected my phone from being destroyed. Yes, the case was broke but that is minor in comparison to how the situation could have ended. Plain and simple, He rescued me. The chapter ends with these words...

We’re depending on God;
    he’s everything we need.
What’s more, our hearts brim with joy
    since we’ve taken for our own his holy name.
Love us, God, with all you’ve got—
    that’s what we’re depending on.

Yes! I feel His love as I go through the 'good' and the 'bad' days of life. I know He watches over me every time I am in the car on these crazy roads. I know He watches over me when I overdo physically. I know He watches over me by putting people in my life that encourage me. He is such a "Good, Good Father" and for that I am so grateful.

Dear Jesus,
Thank You for the blessings of yesterday with our Homecoming Sunday, my phone being found and protected, the rest we had when we got home...the whole day. Thank You for the joy You put into my spirit. May people see it and have the desire for the same. Thank You for the way You provide exactly what is needed. Thank You for the card from Joan on Saturday that was of great encouragement. Father, this morning I am praying for the family who are putting their dog down today. May You give them peace. I also am praying for the family with the loss of a loved one this weekend to have Your comfort. I continue to pray for a healing in my husband's body. Give wisdom to the doctor and resolution to this issue. Lord, cleanse me so I can be filled up with more of You. Give me opportunity today for You to spill out of me. Thank You for being My Good, Good Father. Amen.