Keeping a Prayer Journal

As the close of another year approaches, I have been doing some thinking about how this year has gone and habits that I would like to implement or improve upon for next year.  One thing that I would like to get back to is keeping a prayer journal.  In my prayer journal, I write down the things that I am need of (both spiritual and physical). I write things that I am always in need of (such as surrender, and diligence) and specific things that I need at that time (such as an issue with my car).  I write prayers for my husband as well as my children and other family members.  If I talk to a friend that has an issue or if I meet someone, I write down the things that they ask me to pray for.  Otherwise, it becomes a habit to say “I’ll pray about it”.  I do pray at that moment and maybe even sometime later, but if I don’t write it down, it’s not likely that I will remember.  I ask them to let me know when their request is answered and then make a note of that next to the prayer request.

Here are a couple of my favorite Bible verses and a couple of quotes related to prayer:

Pray without ceasing.  (Thessalonians 5:17)

Be careful for nothing; but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your request be made known unto God.  Phillipians 4:6

  Prayer is the breath of the soul. It is the secret of spiritual power. No other means of grace can be substituted, and the health of the soul be preserved. Prayer brings the heart into immediate contact with the Well-spring of life, and strengthens the sinew and muscle of the religious experience.  {HP 83.5} 

 “For the pardon of sin, for the Holy Spirit, for a Christlike temper, for wisdom and strength to do His work, for any gift He has promised, we may ask; and the promise is ‘Ye shall receive’.” AA 564

These verses and quotes are written in the inside and back cover of my journal.  I add others as I come across this for easy reference and motivation.

Do you keep a prayer journal? Please share your system/method.

The School of Christ

Study to show thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. II Timothy 2:15

As I think of the School of Christ, I think of college courses and the how the average college student takes 15-18 hours per semester. What deep Bible students we would be if we spent this amount of time in Bible study and prayer!
Some of the classes could include Prayer 101-a class that teaches the basics of prayer and considers how Jesus prayed and how He taught His disciples to pray. Scripture Memory 101 which teaches how to memorize/meditate on scripture and looks at key scriptures every Christian should know. A more advanced class on Scripture memory could cover how to use scripture when attacked by the enemy. One of my favorite advanced classes is finding Christ in all the Scriptures. This is especially exciting when dealing with the Old Testament.

If we studied 3 hours a day for 6 days a week, this would equal a full course load of 18 hours. You may be thinking you don't have 3 hours a day to study. Chances are you have more time than you think you do. Even if you did only one hour in the morning and one hour before going to bed, you could easily get in 2 hours which would still put you at 12 hours a week. Twelve hours a week is still full time at most colleges and universities. Consider spending a few minutes throughout the day to commit scripture to memory and you could easily be back up to 15 hours a week or more and that is assuming that you only did six days a week.

So, are you enrolled in the School of Christ? Are you part time or full time? Do you skip class? I must admit that I have been taking a pretty light load lately, but am ready to get back to my full time schedule. With Christ and the Holy Spirit as my professors, I know that I am destined for greatness, if not in this life then surely in the life eternal that awaits me.

I Peter 1:8 Whom having not seen, ye love; in whom though now ye see him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory. As I was reading this verse last night, I could not help but think of pregnancy. As mothers, we love and connect with our babies even before they are born. We believe, through evidences shown in our body that there is life growing inside of us and we "rejoice with joy unspeakable". My prayer today is that Christ may be formed within me and that I might love Him with that same boundless love that I have for my own children.

We Have Moved!

We have moved back to Florida.  It has been nearly 20 years since I've lived here. We move enough that people think we are a military family. :-). I'm  glad to be closer to my Family. I can visit for the weekend or just to say hello.

One of my favorite things about our new house is our wood stove.It's electric and uses wood chips. It even has a thermostat! Who knew?

A Winter Wonderland

Ice at the trunk of the tree

                                          

Ice on the bush in front of the house

                                   

The backyard

My windshield

Top of the car

Ice hanging from the tree

The front yard

More ice hanging from the tree

	I was born and raised in Pensacola and I can't ever remember it looking like this here.  The schools are shut down, and most people are home from work.  Thank God I work from home Many residents are without power, which is really bad considering it's 25 degrees outside.  We  lost power for a few hours last night.  I'm thankful that we have a gas stove that provides some much needed heat. Stay warm friends.  It's crazy out there.

Memorial Service for Daryl Johnson

Today I attended the memorial service for Daryl Johnson.  Daryl and I attended church together at Antioch Missionary Baptist Church.  My memories of him are fond ones.  He was always smiling, and always making others smile and laugh as well.  He was ten years my senior, but he always had a way of making me feel like I was a part of everything.  I appreciate him immensely for that.

He had an amazing voice.  In my mind, I can see him standing at the side podium singing his heart out.  It seemed that he knew every hymn in the hymnal.

Every week during church service, we recited the call to worship consisting of a few verses.  Every now and then, some of those verses would come to mind and they were a comfort to me during difficult times in my life.  The only problem was, I couldn't remember all of them.  I contacted several of the people that attended church with me growing up and none seemed to remember them.  I sent Daryl a message on Facebook asking him to get me a copy.  He immediately responded with all of the verses in order.  He had them memorized!

Leader: Enter into his gates with thankgsiving, and into his courts with praise.

Congregation: O come, let us worship and bow down: let us kneel before the Lord our Maker.

Leader: Oh Lord open thou my lips: and my mouth shall shew forth thy praise.

Congregation: One thing have I desired of the Lord, and that I will seek after that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord and to inquire in His temple.

Leader: Who shall ascend into the hilss of the Lord or who shall stand in His hold place

Congregation: He that has clean hand and a pur heart, who hath not lifted up his soul unto vanity, now sworn deceitfully.

All: Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in thy sight, O Lord, my strength, and my redeemer.

My heart is heavy, but I pray that I will see him again in that great getting-up morning.

~yolanda

Homeschool Week of Prayer

Wake-up Call

As I write today, I am saddened at the news of the tragedy in Connecticut. I can't remember the last time I cried like this.  I was saddened when the news of Columbine hit, when I heard the news of the VA Tech shooting, the news of the movie theater shooting and so forth, but I can't remember being as deeply moved as I was this time. 

My first thought was what kind of sick individual could do such a thing? I thought of the parents who sent their babies off to school only to never see them again.  Perhaps one parent didn't say I love you because they were rushing or just had other things on their mind that moment.  Just the thought of it makes me cry all over again.

What really shook me up the most is the thoughts that came to me as I was having my morning devotion time with God.  I'm sure most people have thoughts of hatred toward the individual who did this even with him being dead, because the natural thought toward someone who would do such is one of hatred, but God said to me "For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly."(Romans 5:6) and "But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." (Romans 5:8)

Christ died even for the man that committed this heinous crime, and had he lived and repented, Christ's blood would cover him.  Can  you imagine that? The love of Christ is powerful enough to forgive and LOVE someone like that. It hit me like a ton of bricks that I obviously do not have that kind of love. So as I pray and grieve with the families of Connecticut, I ask God to fill my soul with a love that only He can give.  The love that I need is not to be found in any human apart from the indwelling of Christ.

It's me O Lord, standing in the need of prayer.

Case Dismissed!

In November of 2011, I received a speeding ticket.  I was accused of going 57 in a 45 m/h zone.  I was quite puzzled when the officer pulled me over, but  I graciously took the ticket nonetheless.  It was my intention to pay the ticket immediately.  I wasn't eligible for a driving course, because I had gotten a ticket just a month before for speeding through a school zone.  The sun was high that day, and I honestly did not see the school lights flashing, so I wasn't "speeding" per se, but with the lights on, doing the normal speed is considering speeding.  I took the class which was much less than my ticket, but was still money that I could have used for something else.

In November of last year, my mom had knee surgery, so I went home for a month.  I sent the payment for my ticket from Florida.  When I got home in January, my money order had been returned because my ticket had not yet been entered into the system.  That was the first time I tried to pay it.  I went into the courthouse and tried to pay it again, but the clerk would not accept it. Why? Because it still had not been entered into the system.  They were about 3 months behind on processing all the tickets. So I waited and went a 3rd time to try to pay the ticket.  Guess what?  Two day prior, my money order had expired and the clerk would not accept it.  You have got to be joking.  Three times on three separate occasions, I tried to pay this ticket.  I took this as a sign from God that the ticket was not to be paid. So I entered a plea of not guilty and waited for my court date.

One day, I'm driving along the same route where I had gotten my ticket and notice that the speed limit is 55!   I took a video from my house to the spot in question to show when I went to court.  When I met with the court's lawyer, he agreed that the current speed limit was 55, but suggested that at the time of my ticket, it was 45 due to construction.  He requested a copy of the officer's video (which should show the speed limit) and scheduled for me to come back.

I contacted the Department of Transportation, because I wanted to know exactly when the speed limit sign had been changed.  The guy I spoke with on the phone was very nice and sent me all the paperwork that I needed.  It seems that there was a 45 mph sign still posted in error on one side of the street.  He didn't know which one and the documents didn't state it clearly.  At any rate, even if the 45 mph sign were still there, I had not yet reached that zone before the officer pulled me over.

I showed up to court for the second time.  The lawyer played the officer's video and it shows that the speed limit sign was actually covered which makes perfect sense, because it wasn't supposed to be there.  Based on that and the documents that I had from the DOT, he dismissed my case!

Thank you Lord for not letting me pay that ticket, and for giving me the idea to contact the DOT.  What an amazing God we serve.

Test Post

My last post had some weird lines in the middle of it so I'm  doing a test post to see what is going on.

The stick bug that greeted me when I got home.  :-)

My New Cousin

This weekend we went to visit to my newest cousin.  I'm not sure if she's my 2nd cousin or 1st cousin once removed.  I never have quite understood how that works.  At any rate, the baby's mom is my first cousin. She slept most of the time that we were there.  She opened her eyes a couple of times and then quickly snuggled back up and went to sleep.

I love the smell of babies.  It was a nice feeling to hold a baby in my arms.  And it was also nice to hand her back as we prepared for home.  :-)

Easter Sunday at the Park

I love Easter Sunday. I love reflecting on the fact that Christ would have died just for me. What a humbling thought. I love my friends and thought of giving my life for them seems like it comes with the territory, but my enemies? Only the love of God would make you even consider putting your life in jeopardy for people who don't even like you!

But that's what my Savior did. While I was yet in my sins and against Him, He stretched out His arms and died. Wow.

I try not to get caught up in the commercialism of the holiday, so to "celebrate" this day, we went to the park and hung out with the ducks. What a great variety they had and new ducklings at that. How cute!

the baby duckling with their mother
A male Mallard duck

At first I thought this was a duck. My daughter says because of it's neck length and size, it's a goose. I'm still learning the difference!! I believe it is a Greater White-fronted Goose.

Reconciliation

In my morning prayer time or sometimes just throughout the day, God will give me words to contemplate. This week He gave me the word reconciliation.

The dictionary defines reconciliation as: and act of reconciling or the state of being reconciled. The process of making consistent or compatible.

The word itself denotes that there is a separation between to parties. In this case, my sins have separated me from God. What's beautiful is that He is not happy with that separation and so He initiates making the relationship right. Wow. Can you imagine that? I sinned against Him and He initiates making things right. What a lesson on how God expects us to treat others.

The idea of inconsistency and incompatibility can definitely be seen in the life of an unconverted person. How exciting it is that God wants me to be compatible with Him and consistent in my relationship with Him.

He placed a few verses on my mind for contemplation. 2 Corinthians 5:19
To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation.'

God, through Christ, is reconciling the world to Himself. He doesn't want to count against me the things that I have done wrong. He wants to be able to see Christ in me the hope of glory. (Colossians 1:27)

Psalm 119 Memorization Update

A while back, I set out to memorize Psalm 119. I started out excited and yet a little intimidated. I got cards made and had every intention of putting holes in them to keep them together. I didn't do that because I didn't have the binder rings that I needed. That was a big mistake. By the time I got the binder rings, I had misplaced half of my cards! I should have just use yarn or something in the meantime.

At any rate, I am back to it with a new determination. So far I can say the first 20 verses from memory. I can recite 21-23 with prompts. I love using the prompt system. It really does work for me.

Here is an example of the prompting system I use. I fold the paper over so I can only see the first letter of each word.

Psa 119:1

Batuitw,wwitlotL.

Psalm 119:1 ALEPH. Blessed are the undefiled in the way, who walk in the law of the LORD.

I made a commitment last night to memorize 4 verses a week. I woke up this morning with severe stomach cramps. Coincidence? Of course not, but that's ok because I'm not letting go of God until He blesses me!

I'm looking forward to being changed through the memorization of God's word. I don't know about you, but I could use a good changing!

Bible Reading Plan

I especially love the Bible Reading Plan that I am using because it begins with the New Testament and only involves reading a few chapters a day. I love beginning with the New Testament because of all the stories and miracles of Jesus. I am able to "see" Him in action and really get to know Him as a person. So if you have tried over and over to read the Bible through and just can't seem to make it past Leviticus, try starting with the New Testament first.

I believe that reading through the Bible is important because when I'm just studying I tend to not read certain books or I just tend to skip certain parts of the Bible, partly because I'm just not all that familiar with what is in them.

Reading through the Bible on a regular basis helps me to become more familiar with the parts I don't know well and it creates a great habit. It also doesn't take long to read a few chapters and with the Bible on audio I can listen even while I am doing something else. I often like to listen as I am reading, especially when I come across difficult words. Alexander Scourby is my favorite when it comes to listening. He seems to have a special ability to make the word come alive.

My prayer is that as I read God's word and search for Him with all my heart, that my heart will be changed into His likeness. Happy reading.

Newness of Life

Therefore, If any man be in Christ He is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold all things are become new. II Corinthians 5:17

As I think of the new year that is fast approaching, my mind is drawn to this verse. I am ready for the new year, ready for a new life in Christ. Don't we all love things that are new? New house, new car, new clothes-there is just something about newness that is appealing and exciting.

The beautiful thing about a new life in Christ is that the newness happens every single day. I love the thought of that. Today I renew my newness in Christ and I pray that it never grows old.

Whispers From God

Lately I have really been enjoying my time with the Lord and not that I don't always enjoy my time with Him, but recently it has taken on an extra special meaning. When I first started having time with God in the mornings, I was at a loss. I knew I should have time, but what in the world was I supposed to be doing during that time?

Believe it or not, not knowing what to do has actually kept me from having my time. When I think about it, it's really silly. Let's suppose I have a really good friend that I love to hang out with. Do I always decide what we are going to do before we hang out? No, because I just enjoy being with that person and by spending time with that person, I get to know them better and grow closer to them.

This has been my relationship with God. I sit in the stillness and listen to Him speak. Sometimes He gives me scripture to meditate on. Sometimes I already know the scripture and can just meditate on it. Sometimes, I only know a portion and have to look it up. Sometimes I am just clueless and He has to guide me all the way.

Other times He impresses my mind with people to pray for-people I haven't heard from in years, or even people I have NO desire to talk to!

Sometimes He remind me that He is a God of order and tell me to go and clean my room. What I love about this is that even in keeping my room orderly, I am worshiping God. WOW, what a thought.

Today He whispered to me that I need to do better at meal planning. :-/ I hate meal planning. I have no idea why, but I do. But I am excited about it because I know God is going to help me. He has already given me ideas to help me out. How can I not love a God like that?

Perhaps you are struggling with your time with the Lord. You don't have to have the perfect Bible study plan or really any plan at all. Just carve out some time and He will take care of the rest!

True Worship

This past week our Sabbath School Lesson was about worship. What I particularly liked about this lesson is how practical it was. It made me think of my everyday life in a different way.

Oftentimes we refer to worship as an isolated event, but closer study reveals that just at the 4 beasts worship day and night, so we worship day and night. The question then becomes, who are we worshiping. Every act of life from washing dishes and laundry, to our interaction with others is an act of worship.

How then do we know who we are worshiping? Our fruits tell it all. One writer says it this way:

" Unless we control our words and tempter, we are slaves to Satan. We are in subjection to him. He lead us captive. All jangling and unpleasant, impatient, fretful words are an offering presented to his satanic majesty. And it is a costly offering, more costly than any sacrifice we can make for God, for it destroys the peace and happiness of whole families, destroys health, and is eventually the cause of forfeiting an eternal life of happiness."

Even the very words that we speak in day to day conversation are an act of worship. How important it is then to have all thoughts brought into subjection to the will of God.

Here are a few points that I gathered from this week's lesson that I thought were worth sharing:

1. God alone, the Creator of the Universe is worthy of worship and praise.

2. True Worship causes the old man to die.

3. True worship causes us to abhor self.

4. In the presence of God, a realization of our sinfulness rises before us.

5. True worship acknowledges who God is (Worthy, Powerful, Mighty, Wise, Just, True, etc...)

My prayer is that as I behold Christ, every thing that I do will reflect the fact that my worship is directed to Him and Him only. Let this mind be in me that was also in Christ Jesus.

Day 73: The Altar of Sacrifice Restored

Be still and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the heathen. I will be exalted among the earth (Psalm 46:10)

As I began my worship time this morning, God reminded me of the importance of stillness in His presence. This is the time when God reveals Himself to me, when I get my instructions for the day, or when He reveals the truths of His word to me (or all of the above).

This 90 Day devotional that I am going through has several scriptures that are given for memorization. I notice a theme of cleansing in a few of them today.

John 15:2 Every branch in Me that beareth not fruit, He taketh away: and every branch that beareth fruit, He purgeth that it may bring forth more fruit.

John 15:3 Now ye are clean through the words which I have said unto you

We must be cleansed. The them of salvation is about cleansing.

Psalm 19:9 The fear of the Lord is clean...

James 4:8 ...Cleanse your hands ye sinners and purify your hearts ye double-minded

Psalm 119:9 Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way...

Psalm 51:10 Create in me a clean heart O God...

For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith as it is written, The just shall live by faith (Romans 1:17)

The death of Christ is sufficient for salvation. We must have faith to believe in the death of Christ. I was not there when Christ was crucified. At no time have I seen Christ in person to know that He is alive. How then do I know that His sacrifice is sufficient?

I believe in Christ because the Bible declares Him as the Savior of the world. Why then do I believe in the Bible as truth? I believe in the Bible as truth because when I meditate upon its themes, my life is transformed. My frustration is turned into joy and peace. The hatred that my natural man so easily gravitates toward is replaced with love. I never have to "try" to get rid of it. Just as the effect of playing dirt is to become dirty, so is the effect of meditating on God's word to bear the fruits of the Spirit.-to be cleansed of the filthiness of the works of the natural heart.

Another reason I believe in the Bible as the inspired word of god is prophecy. The Bible is the only book to predict with accuracy events that cover an unbroken time span of 2300 years. No other book or religion can make such a claim. So, if the God of the Bible can predict the future with such accuracy, then certainly He knows will happen in my lifetime and can guide me to make the best decisions according to His will for my life.

If you are struggling to know which way is the right way, I challenge you to study the prophecies of the Bible. Don't know where to begin? Feel free to contact me.

I will write a separate post soon for those w ho would like to study on their own.

Until then, Study to shew thyself approved...

Day 72: The Shewbread Restored

I have been going through the book Prayer 90x: 90 Days to a Spiritually Fit You by Pastor Ivor Myers. Today's topic is about the restoration of the table of shewbread after being cast down during the dark ages.

Psalm 119:9 Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way? by taking heed thereto according to they word

II Timothy 2:15 Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needed not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth

It is God's word that cleanses us. We must take heed to it.

What does it mean to take heed to God's word?

God has commanded us to study to shew ourselves approved that we not be ashamed. God's word must be divided.

What does it mean to rightly divide God's word?

During the Dark Ages people were not allowed to read God's word. It is the word of God that cleanses and so I can only imagine the "filthiness" of mankind during this time.

It is only the knowledge of truth that will save us from deception. When the truth is know, all deception can be spotted. God said that He would sanctify us with truth and that His word is truth.

John 17:17 Sanctify them through thy truth: they word is truth

In the 1300's, John Wycliff translated the Bible into the common language of the people, thereby restoring the table of shewbread that had been cast down for so long.

Lord thank You for the privilege of having Your word. Thank You for the changes it has made and is making in my life as I heed its counsel and meditate on its meaning. Continue to reveal Yourself to me that by beholding Your character I may be changed into Your likeness. Remove the things from my life that take me away from You. May your word be as sweet as honey in my mouth. May my desire to spend more time among its pages grow as I learn of You and Your love towards me. May I never be separated from Your loving kindness that is better than life.

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