Thank you Lord for 365 Days of Prayer!

I will save you from all your sins, meaning not only vices and degradation,
but from doubts, tears, tempers, despondence, despair, impatience.
Lack of love in big and little things.
Do you need deliverance from cowardice, adverse circumstances, from poverty, form failure, from weakness? God Calling

Our great desire is that you will keep right on loving others as longs as life lasts. hebrews 6 

How diligent are you?
Are you hard working in the place God has called you?

MARRIAGE:

Let us become best friends as two hearts stirred to cherish each other, experiencing together life's joys and struggles.
Let us enjoy the specialness of two lovers sharing passion, expectation, and the desire to be one.
Bless our journey together Lord, with many intimate moments.
Fellowship, friendship, passion.
Kindness is essential in winning anyone's heart.
It is a battle to be consistently known in our own homes.
Have you ever heard yourself with your harsh reprimands?
Whether we are yelling in anger
or speaking in a sarcastic, biting tone,
these types of words will have the effect of closing our spouses and children's hearts.
Seek to elevate kindness in your home.

Lord soften our hearts towards each other.

Have a hard time dealing with all the negative and outright evil news?

The Christians of Philippi might have had their lives stained by continually letting their thoughts dwell on what they could not help seeing and hearing and feeling.  But they were told to consciously thing of things that were true, honorable, just, pure, lovely, of good.

"If there by any virtue, any praise, think on these things."  Phil. 4:8

We must make a conscious effort to look at the good in the world and those around us.

MARRIAGE

Let the wife see that she respects her husband.  Eph. 5:33

Lord, Your spirit can show us how we hurt each other.   

What ever is true, honest,

pure, lovely, good, if there is any virtue, any praise thing about these things.   Phil 4:8  

This includes talking about each other!

One of the secrets of happiness is to think of happy things.

Follow My rules, faithfully honor, esteem, value your spouse.  

Love simplicity.

The daily call of surrender and obedience.

I weep over lives that seek to live without My sustaining power.

They will not come to Me that they might have life.

Live to bring others to Me,

the only source of happiness and heart peace. -God Calling

Servants obey in everything your bosses, not only when their eyes are on you as pleasers of men, 

but with singleness of purpose,

with all your heart,

because of your reverence for God and as a sincere expression of your devotion to Him.

Whatever your task,

work at it heartily as from the soul,

as something done for God and not for man.

Do not be over come with evil,

but overcome, master evil with good.

If your enemy is hungry then feed him.   Romans 12

How do we tell people about You?

How do we tell people about You?

"I weep over those that seek to live without My sustaining power.
They will not come to Me that they might have Me."  
Live to bring others to Me, the only source of Happiness and peace. -God Calling

Servants obey in everything your bosses not only when their eyes are on you as pleasers of men,
but with singleness of purpose,
with all your heart because of your reverence for God and
as a sincere expression of your devotion to Him.  col .13

With God there is no partiality,
no matter what a person's position,
whether he is the slave or the master.   Romans 12

Do not be overcome with evil,
but overcome, master, evil with good.
If your enemy is hungry, feed him.

Work and prayer - two forces to ensure success.
Your work and My work.
Pray believing that I am working for you and with you and in you.
Go forward gladly and unafraid.
I am with you.
With men your tasks may be impossible, but with God all things are possible. -God Calling

MARRIAGE
Let our loving responses to our spouses pain and vulnerability make our marriages a place where pain can be understood and we both can grow.
Help our marriages to become places of caring love and respect.

"Nothing is more beautiful than a strong, humble, God fearing woman who knows who she is and whose she is. If we walk closely with God, we must expect Him to change us,
heal us, transform us.   As we spend time with God and do what He says, our capacity for His influence in our lives supernaturally increases.
Believe that God's redemptive purposes are at work in us right now.   Imagine yourself embracing the days with greater clarity and purpose,
choosing more carefully where you put your time because you are convince more than ever that your life matters.
God will do this work in you to the extent that you trust yourself to Him.
Don't let moments of humiliation define you.   Don't let them derail you.
Let God use those painful vulnerable experiences from your past to shape you into a woman of bold conviction.
There is absolutely no excuse to stay where you are at right now.
If you are weak, He can make you strong, 
If you are timid, 
He can make you brave.
If you are a pervert,
He can make you pure.
If you are selfish, 
He can make you selfless.
If you are a shepherd, 
He can make you a kind.
If you are plain or mediocre,
He can make you a mighty one of valor.

Lord, I entrust my soul, my hopes, my dreams to You.
Forgive me for clinging more to my fears that I do to your promises.
Make me a mighty woman of faith.
Shine your light on my face and light up my countenance
so when others encounter me, they encounter you."

How do we know God's will? Do the next thing. December 28

We cannot be really fed, strengthened, purified, enriched, and made holy unless we fulfill the duties of the present moment.   abandonment to divine providence.

You must never fail to keep this time apart with Me.
The greatest work you can do is done in this time apart with Me.

A life of discipline and joyous fulfillment is to be yours.
Let no riches , no ease entice you from the path of miracle working with Me upon which your feet are set.
Love and laugh.
Trust and pray.
Ride on in a living humility to victory.  -God Calling

Who is wise and understanding among you?
Let him show by GOOD CONDUCT that his works
are done in the
MEEKNESS OF WISDOM.  James 3:13

MARRIAGE

Lord help us not to compare our spouses to others but to love our spouses in  in understanding way.

What ever a man sows, this he will also reap.  gal. 6:7

How we spend our time reflects our priorities.
If God has called you to write,
how much time do you spend writing?
The priorities of life - loving your spouse or talking with your children.
Keep track of how you spend your time!
See if your life is truly reflecting your passion and your priorities.
Always pray until prayer merges into praise.
That is the note that prayer should end on.

How do we know God's will?   Do the next thing.

It is in the small daily mundane decisions of life that we gain ground for God.
We want a dramatic change,
but we gain ground and move from chaos to change in small steps.
When we get out of the drama and chaos onto level ground,
we can go full speed ahead,
one foot in front of the other.
Step by Step.

Teach me to do Your will 
May your good spirit lead me on level ground.  Psalm 143:10

We just don't know what is having an impact on the other person.

What have you been called to do?

What are your priorities?

Keep track of how you spend your time.

Is it reflecting your calling?

If God has called you to write...   are you writing?

You are the Apostles of the 'little services'.

The sun light of My presence is on your paths.
Trust and go forward unafraid.

Please empower us.  Show us Your answers!

Money to hoard is not for My disciples,
journey throughout the world simply seeking the means to do My will and work.
Never keep anything you are not using.
Could you think of Me as hoarding My treasures?
You must never do it.
Rely on Me.
Live in the Joy of My constant presence.
Give Me every moment.
Perform every task however humble, 
as to My gentle bidding, 
and for Me,
for love of Me.
Live, Love, Work.
You are the apostles of the little services.  -God Calling

Lord give us your eternal view of life,
placing priority on things that will last forever.

"May the Lord give you understanding in all things."  2 Tim. 2:7

But what you do in the small things,
people are most repelled or attracted.

So, let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth,
but what is necessary for building up,
that it may impart grace to the hearers.

Satisfy us in the morning with Your unfailing love
so we may sing for joy to the end of our lives.  Psalm 90:14

"The next morning, Abraham was up early and hurried out to the place where he stood 
in the Lord's presence.   Genesis  19:27

Adoration OR hatred of another person always betrays the depth of our own insecurity!

I was alone.

It was not long ago that I was alone.

You have turned our empty house into a crowded home.
Thank you for the blessings.

Please help us to love our families and to be a reflection of Your reality.
When we allow God to strengthen us and ignite our heart,
we gain strength to share.

He fills us up and out of the overflow,
other lives can be changed.
Changed lives are a result of allowing God to continually change you!
Fill up on God and let His light and love overflow to the world around you.

Don't think you can be a reflection of Him?
Think you don't have the resources?

Your Father knows exactly what you need even before you ask Him.  Matt. 7:12

If in doubt as how to love others, this is the direction to take:
Do to others what you would have them do to you,
for this sums up the law and the prophets.   Matthew 7:12

Ever just give up on God?

We still belong to You,
You are holding our right hand.  Psalm 73:23.

Ever just give up on God?
Some crisis in your life causes you to be disillusioned,
to give up,
to lose faith?

Don't let a miserable, self protective, sad, bitter life be your legacy.
Have some one pray for your faith to be restored!
Don't waste you life in misery!

"I still belong to You, You are holding my right hand.  Psalm 73:23.

Christmas.
You are here.
Let us know Your nearness.
It is about You being in our lives,
a belief that You are a loving, caring God who gives us strength and courage and joy and peace in the midst of the world.
We find our peace and joy in You as we become fully alive.
Restore us to You!

My heart trusted in God and I am helped.  Psalm 28:7

Think of God being with you everywhere you go.
Like a best friend who is a travelling companion.

Thank You for this day.
Guide it for us please!

Sage - you have come a long way baby!

Were you once filled with fear?

God's presence in our lives can completely change us!

You can become a Sage!

As a sage, you're truly one of a kind and you will not be confined by anything. When faced with problems, you think deeply and calculate every option on the table. You always believe you can achieve anything you set out to do, and you live life in a such a way that it keeps people fascinated and intrigued by you.

Shed peace wherever you go,
not discord.
But is must be My peace, 
not a peace that is a truce with evil.

In the world you will have tribulation but be of good cheer,
I have overcome the world.  John 16:33

The world, even My own followers, woulds see a Lost Cause.
Outcast, spit upon, scourged,
they would see Me as conquered.
How could they know that My Spirit was free, unbroken, unharmed.
In My conquering power you walk unharmed today. --God Calling

Eyes have not seen,
ears have not heard what God has planned for those who love Him.

A candle must not be set under a bushel, but on a candlestick. 12-22

A candle must not be set under a bushel,
but on a candlestick, 
that is may give light to all who are in the house.
All must see and know your joy and seeing it,
know without any doubt,
that it springs from trust in Me.
From living with Me.
The hard dull way of resignation is NOT My way.
So trust, so conquer, so joy.
Love, love, love of Me.
The consciousness of My presence. -God Calling

Guide our paths.
Light our way.
Tell us when to speak and when to be silent.
Guide us as to how to be a witness for Your love.

MARRIAGE
A spouse's verbalized appreciation will mean more to the partner than a counselor's will.
Empathy from a spouse will touch deeper then a mere counselor's.
Help us with the mystery of two becoming one!

God has a unique plan for each of our lives and the gifts He gives us are part of that plan.
We can trust Him.
He knows His business.
Our business is to walk in love.
Love is not envious.
It does not boil over with jealousy.
Anyone who intends to have a strong love walk will have to grow beyond being envious and jealous of other people.   -Joyce Meyer

I am the Lord of the moments.

Take every moment as of My Planning and ordering.
remember I am Lord of the little happenings too.
In all the small things yield to My gentle pressure on your arm.
Stay or go, as that pressure indicates.

The Lord of the moments.

When things do not fall out according to your plan, 
then smile at Me indulgently,
a smile of Love,
and say, as you would to a human loved one,
I love Your ways.
My loving response will be to make that way as easy for your feet as it can be.     -God calling

Fight fear and depression like you would fight a plague!

Fight fear as you would fight a plague.
Depression is a state of fear.
Fight.
Fight.

MARRIAGE
My heart trusted in God and I am helped.  psalm 28
It is better to live in the desert then with a crabby complaining spouse.  Proverbs 21:19
Only as we keep our eyes on you and trust you can we trust each other.

Greatness is service.
No position, just a servant.

Cry out for insight/seek wisdom/raise your voice for understanding.
Seek wisdom as You seek money!
Search for skillful and Godly wisdom as for hidden treasures.
Then you will find wisdom, knowledge, understanding.
You will know the right path to take. Proverbs 2

Help us to hold Your hand,
trusting that You will take care of everything even better than an earthly father possibly can.

I have all your affairs in My hands.
No man can save unless he understands the sinner.
I change the seasons, you do not!

Do not fear.

Never let yourselves fear anybody or anything.
No fear of My failing you.
No fear that your faith will fail you.
No fear of poverty or loneliness.
No fear of knowing the way.
No fear of others.
No fear of their misunderstanding.
Speak to Me about everything.
Listen to Me at all times.
Feel My tender nearness,
substituting at once some thought of Me. -God Calling

Our First Love.

Stir us often Lord, with  remembrance's of our first love.

Seek in every way to become childlike until the years of daily prayer,
daily seeking have added to your nature that of the trusting child.
GOAL:  Joy in life, ready laughter, lack of criticism, desire to share,
              friendliness towards all, kindness towards all, not criticizing, not fearful.

Please help us to have confidence, trust, faith in You.

"I trust in You,
You are my God,
My life is in Your hands.    Psalm 31:14-15

Thank You for being patient with us,
You are first, last, always our God and our dearest friend.

You know what keeps haunting us Lord,
We are not sufficient,not smart, not perfect, not good enough..
                            BUT
You are sufficient,
YOU are perfect,
You are smart,
You are good enough.

Lean on Him in absolute trust and confidence in His power, wisdom, goodness.
Have the roots of your being firmly and deeply planted in Him,
being continually built up in Him,
becoming more confirmed and established in faith.   Col. 2:7

Sanctuary - God is my safe place!

For I know the plans I have for you, thoughts of peace and not evil.  Jeremiah 29:11

Instead of your former shame and dishonor, you shall have joy and plenty.   Is. 61: 7,8 

Lord we lift up all the thoughts in our head to You.
You know our problems with communication and drive and intimacy.
Sometimes we feel like our hands are tied.

Help us to see that all things are planned by You.
We rejoice in that vision.
Help us to remember and have the strength and grace to do all things in love and
in a spirit of true forgiveness.

GOALS FOR MARRIAGE

Lord, help us to grow in the knowledge and love of You.
Help us both to grow in relationship with You, each other, and our family.

Our hope is in You

Thank You that our hope is in You.
We can be tired and cranky, wearied by the days work and lack of sleep.
Is that part of our training?
Are You training us to be loving when exhausted?
Are You showing us what we are really made of?
Are You training us to absorb more of You in our weakness?
Please give us Your grace and love during this training.
Give us your joy, that no man, no poverty, no fatigue,
no circumstance can take away from us.

Between My Promise of the gift of joy to my disciples and their realization of the joy,
came sense of failure, disappointment, denial, desertion, hopelessness, then
hope, waiting and patiently seeing Me in the dull dark days of trusting when you cannot see.
Joy is as it were your heart's response to My smile of recognition of your faithfulness.
Stop thinking your lives are all wrong if you do not feel it.
Remember you may not yet be joyous,
but you are becoming brace and courage and unselfish thoughts for others are as sure signs of true discipleship as joy. -God Calling

May the God of peace make you complete in every good work to do His will.  Heb. 13:21

MARRIAGE

"We thought loving each other would come naturally.
When it didn't we did our fair share of finger pointing for who was to blame.
The early years of marriage can feel like you are in boot camp.
The pain can be intense.
God uses our marital pains and hurts to train us to be truly loving people.
Marriage is clearly meant to be a training ground for the refinement of our character.
It is meant to bring maturity.
He is training us to be more loving and selfless.

CHILDREN

They aren't perfect,
they will make mistakes just like we do,
but are we as parents dealing with the mistakes,
getting the kids the resources they need and helping them to grow in grace?
The point at which you may need to set aside your own dreams and plans is when you don't have enough time to help a child keep his or her faith.
When that becomes the case,
you may need to take time away from a call to leadership and focus your energies on being spiritual leaders to your kids.
There will be other opportunities to lead in an other capacity.
But first you want to be sure that your children are on the way to the finish line.   Devotions for Women on the GO

Trust Me with a Humbler heart

Lord, help us to live every day in Your strength.
We are learning so much of how we are truly unloving, cranky people!
Please help us to know You better,
love You more,
Lord, draw us close to You.
Never let us go.

Only the Lord can provide an understand wife.  Prov. 19:14

A wise person stays calm when insulted,
doesn't make a show of their knowledge,
thinks before they act,
looks ahead to see what is coming,
carefully considers their steps,
foresees danger ahead
and takes precautions.
The prudent person thinks it through.        Proverbs   

How many of our decisions are based on emotion?
Do we buy something because the person selling it is sweet?
Or it is your cousin and you owe your aunt a favor?
The favor is now a guilt offering.
Do you spend money when you feel depressed or eat treats because you feel entitled?
See how much emotions are affecting your decision!    -Women on the Go

I  am not alone.

Trust Me my child, trust Me with a Humbler heart and a fuller abandon to My will then you ever did before.
Trust Me to pour My love through you minute by minute.
And if you should be conscious of anything hindering the flow,
do not hurt My love by going away from Me in discouragement,
for nothing can hurt love so much as that.
Draw closer to Me,
run to Me to hide, even from yourself.
tell Me about the trouble.
Trust Me to turn My hand upon you and thoroughly remove the boulder that has 
choked your riverbed, 
and take away all the sand that has silted up the channel.  
I will not leave you
I will perfect you.
Fear not.
fear not.   -Amy Carmichael

I will say of the Lord, You are my refuge and my fortress, My God in Him will I trust.  Psalm 91:2

Become as little children.   Matt 18:2-3
A child trusts,
provides nothing for itself,
lives in the present moment,
receives its life unquestioningly.
A child is well cared for, fed, clothed, loved, rejoiced in.
Sometimes we see our lack of patience in ourselves.

The life of faith consists of this:
a child in the fathers house.   
It transforms every weary burdened life into one of blessedness and rest.  Hannah Whitall Smith.

MARRIAGE
Train our hearts to know You Lord, and to truly know our spouses
.
Training takes practice,
it implies some progress and some defeat,
two steps forward and one back.
Realizing this need for practice helps develop patience,
patience with myself and patience with others.

God doesn't promise understanding,
He promises peace in the midst of not understanding.
God give us grace.
grace is especially noticed when it is in the midst of people of chaos, character flaws,
and crudeness.

Are you rising above the sea of sinfulness around you?
Are you holding out a lifeline of God's love by modeling love?

Thank You that you give us hope, knowing that we are weak,
You promise Your strength and guidance and grace.

Thankfully God has not left us on our own!
When we turn to Him,
He promises to train us in His way.

Fullness of Joy.
The joy of perpetual guidance,
the joy of knowing that every detail of your lives is planned by Me,
but planned with a wealth of tenderness and love.
Wait for guidance in every step.
Wait to be shown My way.
The thought of this loving leading should give you great joy.
All the responsibility of Life taken off your shoulders.
All its business worry taken off your shoulders!
It is indeed a joy for you to feel so free and yet so planned for.
Oh the wonder of this God guided life. _God Calling

He who has begun a good work in you will bring it to completion.  Phil. 1:6

He caused all things to work together for good.
You don't know the gifts you have in your midst!
Quit looking for something else!
See the beauty of what is right in your own home, now!
See them!

Lord help us not to overlook the answers that are right in our midst.

Perfect love casts out fear. - December 12

Perfect love casts out fear  1 John 4:18

Love and fear cannot dwell together.
Fear is on of evils most potent forces.   
The only way to have the perfect love that dispels fear is to have Me more and more in your lives.
You can only banish fear by My presence.
Say my name.
Fear of the future - I will be with you.
Fear of poverty - I will provide.
You must not allow fear to enter.
Talk to Me.
Think of Me.
Talk of Me.
Love Me.
And that sense of My Power will so possess you that no fear can possess your mind.
Be strong in My love. -God Calling

Faith= Joy of confidence
Positiveness of trust.

The human soul is stifled in the strenuous lower life.
It's energies are paralyzed unless it seeks renewal at the divine springs.
It is the strenuousness of life,
unrelieved by love and by prayer,
unrelieved by the spiritual luxury of loving service and outgoing thought,
this strenuous attitude,
intent on getting and greed and gain and personal advantage that at last
ends in the discords and the crimes, the despair and the suicides, 
whose records fill the daily press.
You will show one me the way of life,
you will make me full of joy with your face.
This alone is the cure,
the relief,
the leading into peace and serenity and joy.
It is in the serene and joyous exaltation of life alone that one truly lives,
in the sweetness of trust and generous aims and love that radiates its joy and beauty to all.  -Lilian Whiting, a Gentle Spirit.

MARRIAGE
If you bite and devour one another, beware lest you be consumed.
When love becomes conditional,
the marriage is robbed of its intended abundance.
Thankfully God has not left us on our own.
When we turn to Him,
He promises to train us in His way -
the way of giving, accepting, loving.
We are grateful, Lord, that You have not left us to ourselves.

We are so much less than loving people!!
Sometimes we can be down right ornery and self centered.

Take each day as a joyous surprise gift from Me.
Your simple daily tasks done in My strength and love will bring the consciousness of all your highest hopes.
Expect great things!   Expect great things!   -God Calling

We are human after all!
When our heroes are less than perfect.....
remember,
we are human after all!

Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart.  Psalm 37:4

This means that God will put the desires in your heart that He wants to be there.
What do you daydream about,
plan for, long for,
what is your heart set on, and what is really important to you?
What you have your heart set on will make all the difference in the world in your fulfillment and your joy.
God make my desires to be the ones You want me to have.
Seek after God and use the same passion & energy that you currently be using on other idols! 1 John 2
The world passes away and disappears, 
and with it all the forbidden cravings of it.
He who does the will of God and carries out His purposes in his life remains forever. 

Step out of the shadows of self doubt to live with a confident heart.   
Exchange fear filled thinking with faith filled believing.
Embrace your God given purpose, passion, and personality.
See beyond who you are to who you are becoming in Him.-Renee Swope

MARRIAGE
So many struggles that we go through as husbands and wives!
Anxiety is common in individuals and marriages.
One major fear is fear of inadequacy.
Anxiety puts us on the spot and we draw a blank.....
anxiety rises, tension, anger, and conflict.
God can train us and give us victory over our feelings of inadequacy.
Each man must love his wife as he loves himself,
and the wife must respect her husband.   Ephesians 5:33
Your spouse needs to know that he can have confidence in your dream 
and the dreams you have together.

Prayer - the quiet time

THE QUIET TIME
There may be times when I reveal nothing, command nothing,give no guidance.
But your path is clear and your task is to grow daily, more and more into the knowledge of Me.
I may ask you to sit before Me.
And I may speak no word that you can write!
All the same that waiting with Me will bring comfort and peace.
Only friends who understand and love each other can wait silent in each others presence.
Wait, love, joy. -God Calling

Help us to be  gracious, assertive, and loving leaders.
Someone people are drawn to and who are drawn to You as a result .
Help us to trust that You will lead and teach us as gently as possible.
We want to be come a leaders, a friend, faithful people, a hero to others.

Many people look up at God as one of the most selfish, self absorbed beings in the universe, interested only in His own glory and honor.   Looking out continually that His own rights are never trampled on.  He is not selfish, but he is instead caring for us.   A Gentle Spirit.

Let your good deeds shine out for all to see,
so that everyone willl praise your Father in Heaven!   Matt. 5:16
Be subject to God's authority.
He has all your affairs in His hands.
He will develop us and bring us to perfection.  phil. 1:3-6
He will fulfill His will for us.   1 Thess. 5:23-24
Whatever you do, whatever you eat or drink, do it all for the Glory of God.   1 Cor. 10:31

I suck at being a good person!!
There, I said it.
Lord, I try to be a witness of You but a lot of times
I screw it up in my impatience and weakness.
Please draw me close to You
and let me draw others to You.

But as for me, my feet had almost slipped, I had nearly lost my foothold.  Psalm 73:2
We need to shift our focus to the only place we can find security and strength...Our relationship with God.

You are giving us courage,
courage to face giants of fear in ourself,

When fear grips our heart or mind, Lord help us to turn to You for the answers.
Our impulse is to run and hide in self preservation and fear.
What do You want us to do, Lord?

Fear grips our hearts as we think,
Have We lost out on what we were supposed to do here?
Do You have something for us?
Holding Your hand is the only way for us!

Thank you for letting us know You,
 and the joy, hope, excitement that gives us... strength.
Thank You for waking us back up!
Some times we wander too long without You.

Count it your greatest Joy to be the means by your lives, sufferings, words, and love, to prove to the questing ones you know, that their search would end when they see Me.  
My example was, I would leave My work to seek communion with the Father.
It is the still small voice, not the shouting of a mob, that alone will persuade men.
Follow Me into the quiet places of prayer. God Calling

I nearly lost my way. -December 8

Step out of the shadows of fear and doubt!

 Please let us get all of our confidence from You.
May no gift of Yours ever take Your place in our hearts.
Thank you that you give us courage.
You can take all our emotions including jealousy, anger, sensitivity,
insecurity, and redeem them.

Thank you for our work in a secular world.
Sometimes it seems that when in the 'Christian world', we share you,
and the sharing is just received as a 'should' of the environment,
not as a heartfelt, sincere word of guidance.

"But as for me, my feet had almost slipped, I had nearly lost my foothold.   Psalm 73:2.
We need to shift our focus to the only place we can find security and strength.
Our relationship with God.

Lord it is funny,
I see other people's paths,
and I think that I want their path.
So naive,
I know nothing of their path.
I thank You for the path You have me on,
please help me to embrace it and You.
You have done so much for me and my loved ones.

Marriage

We are often required to endure patiently tolerating an annoying habit or personality characteristic.
We all have these so we all need tolerance from each other.
Lord help us to love the 'quirks' of each other.
Some times we may get annoyed or frustrated or tired.
It doesn't mean that we don't love someone,
It just means that we are annoyed or frustrated or tired, or sick.
It may have absolutely nothing to do with the other person!
Please help us to realize that about them as well!

Thank You for the courage to face our fears.

Our pain can lead to bitterness and bondage

God

When our questions make us doubt Gods heart,
our pain can lead to bitterness and bondage.
Yet in the security of our relationship with God,
He wants us to ask the hard questions
and look for answers that usher us into the depths of His redeeming love.
He wants us to live in the promise that He offers hope for our future despite the pain of our past.
He knows our past and our pain can actually lead us to His plans and hope for our future.

Are you a safe place to be real where people can unload all of their hurts , 
disappointments and doubts about God on you,
with no pat answers?   "She simply looked at me with understanding in her eyes and told me she was sorry.
Then she shared her story with me.   I didn't sense doubt or pain in her words.
Instead I sensed confidence and hope.
She referred to God as the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles,
so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive. from God.
She told me that Gods redeeming love was the source of her joy. 
She had allowed Him to take her pain and give her purpose." - Renee Swope

When You have heard My voice,
and are going to fulfill your mission to work for Me
and to draw souls to Me.
When little temptations come or big ones,
for love of Me you will conquer them.   God Calling

Marriage

Please let us honor You in our marriage.
In Song of Songs,
she says she is starving for his love.
If you are married,
your husband longs to hear these words.
Help us to love each other Lord.

The whole idea of a God to me is ridiculous.

Honestly, the whole idea of a God to me is ridiculous.
There, I said it.
Just the thought of some being 'out there' involved in our lives.
It's just wierd.

Yet when I see You working in my life,
there are way too many 'coincidences'.
They point to a loving God who actually wants to be involved in my life,
and wants a love relationship with me.
I believe more in You,
help me in my unbelief.

HEROES

Please bless the heroes in our lives,
help us to lift them up and support them.
And help us to be the heroes You have made us to be!

We try to be good, and it is not in us!
We can be cranky and impatient!
Help us to turn to You for grace and strength to do what we are supposed to.
We have to learn to call on You to help us be loving and kind,
because even though we might 'will' to be so,
we need Your super grace to imbue us with the loving ability.

Give to all you meet,
or whose lives touch yours.
Give of your time, your prayers, yourselves, your love, your thoughts.
You must practice this giving first.
Give according to need, not desert,
In giving with the though of supplying a real need,
you most closely resemble the father in heaven.
As you receive,
you must supply the needs of those I bring to you.
Not questioning, not limiting.
Their nearness to you, their relationship,
must never count.
Only their need is to guide you.
Pray to become great givers. God Calling

Let each person lead the life that they have been called to.
God has put us here and we should now display His worth in this job.
We go to work 'with God'.   We do not just do a job.
We do our job 'with God'.

"Fear not for I am with you, I will help you, I will uphold you."  Isaiah 41:10

There are no negative connotations about secular work.
God Himself rested from His work ...
implying that work is a good, Godlike thing.
At the heart of the meaning of work is creativity.
The essence of our work as humans must be that it is done in conscious 
reliance on God's power, and 
in conscious quest of God's pattern of excellence,
and in deliberate aim to reflect God's glory.
When you work like this -
no matter what your vocation is,
you can have a sweet sense of peace at the end of the day.
It has not been wasted. -John Piper

Prayer is not meditation alone.

Prayer is not meditation alone,
prayer is not being alone,
prayer is setting aside a private time to hear from You,
to share with You our day, our concerns and joys,
a time to share and relish with You sweet times of answered prayers
and times to share our joy for Your movement in our lives.

MARRIAGE

Thank you for loving our spouses the way you do!
You know what makes our spouse happy.
You know what our spouse desires.
You can bless them through us!
Help us to be connected to the gifts You give them.
You can gift us with unexpected ability, time, and health to help grant these desires to our spouse.

"Catch all the little critters before they ruin the vineyard of your love, 
for the grapevines are all in blossom.   Song of Songs 2:15

-Negative attitudes, criticism, harsh words, taking others for granted, not valuing each other, unrealistic expectation's, needing to deal with our own baggage, needing to say I am sorry....

Lord please help us to see the little critters that we bring into our relationships that destroy them.
Show them lovingly to us, help us to be positive and loving in our relationships.
Help us to be open to reason, not easily offended.

"One of the things you must seek to do is to set aside the worlds values, 
judge only according to the values of heaven.
Do not seek the praise and the notice of men.
In your dark hours, when human help fails,
keep very close to Me. " God Calling

When Doubt whispers -You don't have anything to offer!

When doubt whispers-
I don't have anything to offer.....
Comparison causes us to compete with each other,
but no one wins,
God never intended for us to compete with each other.
He wants us to complete one another,
celebrating and encouraging each other's strengths while discovering 
who He created us to be.
The only way you can break free from the comparison trap is to embrace the reason you are who you are.

You are God's beloved.

Comparison leaves us insecure, confused, and discontent.
Every time I compare myself with someone else,
I can never measure up because I am measuring my insides with their outsides.
We compare how we feel inadequate on the inside with someone who looks like they have it all together. on the outside.
Then we try to polish our outsides,
hoping that will make us feel better on the inside,
but it never does.  -Renee Swopes

His heart is established, He will not be afraid.   Psalm 112:8

We don't choose the things of God so that we can be happy in the life hereafter,
we choose His things because our relationship with Him is becoming the most important relationship in our lives.  As we see His loving action in our lives. We can't help but want to know Him more
as He gives us hope, direction, purpose, joy, peace, comfort.

When you get bad news:
 Focus on God - run to Him.
 Focus on getting to th truth
 Focus on the positive.

Open our eyes to the beauty of this day and the gifts You have arranged in it.
Forgive us when we try to get different things that we think we want for the day.

Scoop your present moment up and give it to God.

"The men and women in your life are not Gods,
Not devils,
But fellow travellers in their love walk with Me."

Thank you for the pleasant times we have with our loved ones.

Draw close to Me.
Strive to be the friend I see in My vision of you.
Listen to Me.

You know the intimidation and jealousy that we can sometimes feel regarding our talents
and our interactions with others.

"I give you the loving intimacy of a friend, 
but I am God, too.
The wonder of our intercourse, the miracle of your intimacy with Me,
will mean more to you if you sometimes see My Majesty."  God Calling.

MARRIAGE
Lord help us to love each other more.
Help us to communicate better and enjoy each others company.
Help us to be close to You.

Scoop your present moment up and give it to God.
Don't just try to make it through each moment.
Turn it over to Him and let Him redeem and make a miracle 
out of each moment.

Grab a hold of your present concerns,
wrap your arms around the now,
ask God to grace you with His presence and intimacy, and power, insight, 
and revelation will return to your soul.

FEAR NOT! Give this moment in time to Him~

Trust that You are protected by Me.
Spend so much time with Me that you become like Me.

No Fear, Be at Peace, Be thankful, Be obedient, Keep your prayer time, Guard your thoughts,
Don't point fingers, Give to others.

FEAR NOT!   Peace to You.  Be strong!   Daniel 10:19

God is the God of limitless resources.
The only limit comes from us.
Our requests, our thoughts, our prayers
are too small and our expectations are too low.
God is trying to raise our visions to a higher level,
call us to greater expectations,   A.B. Simpson

A painful season can wake up your soul!

"God teaches us to let Him redeem our momenst so they will count for eternity.
Our human tendency is to miss divine opportunities ,
in our midst and address instead the symptoms of our present moments.
When we are uncomfortable we like to medicate.
When we are afraid, 
we opt for running away.
When we are discontent we are likely to consume.
Cruise control religion drives us to get through each moment,
causing us to completely miss its Divine significance.
Part of what it means to live a life of promise and impossibilities is simply to scoop the present moment in our hands and lift it up to God.
We must be fully present with the Lord in our every day circumstances because our present moments are only valuable to the extent that we eternally invest them.
If we stop looking for God in our daily lives,
if we stop seeking after Him and listening for Him,
we subtly move from a living, breathing fellowship with Him, 
to a rote and wooden walk apart from Him.
When I grab a hold of my present concerns,
wrap my arms around the present moment,
and bring my whole self into the presence of God,
power, insight, and revelation return to my soul."    -Visionary Marriage

Lord,
please don't let us miss your blessings in the present moment of our lives.
Don't let us wander from You.

I get so frustrated, aggravated, irritated, explosive!

Ever feel like freaking out!
Too much stress?
Can't even seem to get your prayer time?

"The eternal God is My refuge.   Deuteronomy 33:27

A place to flee.
A sanctuary,
and an escape from misunderstanding,
from even yourself!
God is your refuge.
In His greatness,
you forget your smallness, meanness and limitations.
Until the relief of safety merges into the joy of appreciation of your refuge.
and you absorb Him,
and absorbing Him you gain strength to conquer.

On my own I get so frustrated, aggravated, irritated, explosive.
Help us to walk with You.
Without you Lord, we are only concerned with self preservation
and control of our surroundings.
With You we can think about others,
care for them
Because of You, we feel whole.
We don't have to hoard our splintered pieces together to stay whole,
because You are our wholeness.
You glue all our pieces where they need to be,
You are the boundary around us to keep us whole.
Without you we are splintered and torn by our thoughts, desires and actions.
With You everything gets its meaning and purpose.

The prayer "thy will be done".....
I can only pray that wholeheartedly as I grow to know You more.
I give You my fear and mistrust of You.
You hold us close, and we know You are remaking us, healing us.
Help us not to have fear.

"There is a spot on earth, a sphere of influence that belongs only to you.
It has been given to you by God.
It is possible for you to bring about God's complete will in your sphere of influence here on earth.
Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
What if everyone really brought God's will to the little sphere that is his."

You know our obsessions.

"Take my burden upon you 
and learn of Me,
For I am meek and lowly in heart,
and you shall find rest for your soul."   Matt. 11:29

Lord, You know our obsessions, our weaknesses.
We give them to You (again).
We thank You that You give us confidence and hope.
We thank You that You give us peace.
Thank You that our hope lies in You.
You can take all the things of our hearts and minds
and heal them,
You can transform our hearts and minds with Your love.
Let us be obsessed with You.

I am a generous giver.
Our lives are one.
All that is in My nature must pass to yours,
where the contact is so close.
Have courage.
I am Love, joy, peace, strength, power, healing, humility, patience.
You will have tese too,
as My life flows through yours.

You do not make yourself loving, strong, and patient, humble.
You live with Me
Then My Life accomplishes the miracle change. -God Calling

What encouraging words these are!
Especially when we can so clearly see our failings and weaknesses!

God promises to shape our desires.
There is a connection between our delighting in God and
discovering our hearts desires.

"If you want to know your purpose, 
pursue the heart of God and you will have a head on collision with your calling."  Beth Moore

Take time for prayer.
Take more time to be alone with Me.
So only will you prosper.
Be not afraid.
All is well.
Just feel My touch,
sense My presence and the fever of work,
care, and fear just melts into nothingness and 
health, joy, peace takes its place.

Pray for the seeing eye,
to see the beauty of My character,
of My Spirit.
Pray to have faith to see the beauty of My love in My dealings with You,
in My actions.
Until, what the world will distort into cruelty and harshness,
you, with the eyes of faith will see all that you could desire.
Know Me.
Talk to Me.
Let Me talk to you so that I may make clear to your loving hearts what seems mysterious now and purposeless. -God Calling

I thank You Lord for the ways You have answered prayer.
You are teaching us how to see others,
not as higher or lower then us,
but as fellow sojourners in our love walk to You.

I am learning that what matters is our love walk with You.
Other's opinions fluctuate like the wind.

It was exactly when my fear and disappointment was greatest 
that God came close to me in comfort and truth.
List of praise and thanksgiving is not a matter of how we feel emotionally,
it is a matter of will.

Do you feel in control?

A relative of mine asked me if I felt in control.
The question made me laugh.
We have control of so little!

If you yearn for happiness, rest, satisfaction
that you have never felt in the world and it's pursuits,
Come to Me and I will give you rest.
If someone has shut you out or forgotten you, 
you think now they must wait!
No.
Remember the Heavenly beggar,
and learn of Me,
humility.
Even if a person shuts Me out 

I stand at the door and knock .-God calling

Lord, sometimes we shut You out.
Thank You so much for caring,
thank You for letting us now Your presence again.

Learn that each man's happiness, peace and rest are valuable to Me,
and learn, praying, to copy the Divine Unrest until a soul finds rest and peace in Me.

Behold I stand at the door and knock.  Rev. 3:20

Nothing I have is my own.

Depend on Me.
Divine supply is a difficult lesson for My children to learn.
So dependent have you become on material supply that you fail to understand.
You must live as I tell you.
Depend on Me.
Come to Me.
Talk to Me.
Dwell with Me.
Come very near to Me.
Come sit with Me.
Take each days happenings as work you can do for Me.
In that spirit a blessing will attend all you do. -God Calling

It isn't a question of giving only if I am so rich that it won't hurt,
It is a question of realizing nothing I have is my own.

You don't want us to be afraid of anything.
You want us to tackle our fear head on with You clearing the path!

MARRIAGE

When you feel your worst,
your spouse pulls alongside you and offers help.

God help us walk inside our spouse's shoes and sympathize with his/her pain.
Let it be said by our spouse that we pull alongside them and offer them help!

Dear Lord please expand my vision for my role and calling in my family.
Train me to love my spouse the way You call me to and help me to be a blessing to everyone in my home.
Turn my heart toward the ministry of my home.
I want to excel and succeed as the keeper of my home.
Guard my heart from other loves and impurity.
Give me the self control that I don't have on my own.
Give me the grace to live at home in such a way that Your Word would be honored. -Visionary Marriage

We don't have to be dead shaking frail leaves in the wind.

In the world you will have tribulation, but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.  John 16:33

I am afraid of these tribulations that are talked about in the Bible.
Of the tribulations I hear people talk about,
but You tell us not to fear.
You are making us stronger.
You are making it so that we are not a shaking frail dead leaf in the wind.
Staying connected to You brings us life!
Thank you that You are our confidence.

"Fear restrains most of us.
We are afraid that we will never get what we want in life if we don't make it happen ourselves.
We should never derive our identity from another person,
nor should we impose ours upon anyone else.
Know who you are,
be free to reach your full potential,
but learn to operate in trust with God and with others,
not in fear.
Don't be afraid that if you don't make your dreams come true,
you will lose out in life. -Joyce Meyers

The world, even My own followers would see a lost cause.   
Outcast, spit on, scourged, they would see Me as conquered.   
How could they know that My spirit was free, unbroken, unharmed.
In My conquering power you walk unharmed today.   -God Calling

Eyes have not seen, ears have not heard,
what God has planned for those who love Him.  -1 Corinthians 2:9

I am very excited God!
Excited because I see You bringing me past fear as I walk with my hand in Yours.
I see hope.
All things that I saw as dead to me,
You are bringing to life in ways I could never imagine.
You have so much more for us, to satisfy us!
You give us joy, hope, peace.

Whatever God gives us , we must learn to hold loosely in our hands.
If we don't own anything, we cannot lose anything.   -Joyce Meyers

The way You speak to me makes me smile.

If I speak with the tongues of men and of angels
and have not love,
I am like sounding brass or tinkling cymbal.   1 cor 13:1

If man only saw how vain is so much of his activity!  
So much work done in My Name is not acknowledged by Me.
As for Love:
Turn out from your hearts and lives all that is not loving,
so you will bear fruit,
and this shall all men know you are my disciples,
because you have love for one another. -God Calling

Thank You for Your stamp on our lives.
The imprint in each day when we see You at work in our lives.
Thank You that it is so tender,
How you speak to us.
In ways that no one else will ever know.
You make us smile in the intimate detail and answers You give us.

A time to keep silent and a time to speak.

A time to keep silence, and a time to speak.   eccl. 3:7

Thank You for this day and time.
Help us, guide us, guide our steps.

A candle must not be set under a bushel,
but be put on a candlestick,
that it may give light to all who are in the house.
They must see and know your joy,
and seeing it,
know without any doubt that it springs from trust in Me.
From living with Me.
The hard dull way of resignation is NOT my way.
So trust, so conquer, so joy.
Love, love, love of Me.
The consciousness of My presence. -God Calling

We find ourselves torn sometimes, Lord,
it is hard to know on any day which decisions are to be made.
Guide our paths, light our way.
Tell us when to speak and when to be silent.
Let us not be the the hider who is afraid to speak.
Give us courage and inspiration when we are to speak.
Let us not be the person who tramples on others with their speaking.
Don't let us decide that our 'rights' give us the right to scream and yell at others.
Help us to treat others with dignity even when we have been wronged.
Guide us as how to be a witness for Your love.

MARRIAGE
A spouse's verbalized appreciation will mean more to the partner than a counselor's will.
Empathy from a spouse will touch deeper then a mere counselor's.
Help us Father with the mystery of the two becoming one.

JEALOUSY
Ever find yourself jealous of someone because they have something that you think you want?
It is an ugly feeling!
God has a unique plan for each of our lives and the gifts He gives us are part of that plan.
We can trust Him.
He knows His business.
Our business is to walk in love.
Love is not envious.
It does not boil over with jealousy.
Anyone who intends to have a strong love walk will have to grow beyond being envious and jealous of other people.  -Joyce Meyer

Only in You can this happen!