Needing a little lift today...

Dear Heavenly Father,

Lord Jesus I've already had negative thoughts today and I've only been awake a short time. Help me to control my mind. Help me to focus on good, pure, happy, thoughts. I don't want to dwell on the negative.

Father God, spiritual warfare is all in our mind isn't it...? How we interpret what is said, how we perceive other's motives, and how we react to these things is so complicated. Lord, you certainly made us complex creatures...! And I praise you for that, but Father I don't understand myself at times. How can a man who loves You and only wants to serve and glorify you stumble and fall so much..?

Father God, I feel that I'm sinning when I get angry. I want to be about patience, love, forgiveness. Today Lord I'm just asking for help with my heart regarding certain situations. (You know what they are...)

Help me conquer the battle of my mind, my King. Father I know that my random thiughts are keeping me from a closer relationship with You. Your Apostle Paul wrote about holding every thought in captivity. That's what I want to do, Lord.

Lord Jesus I know with you all things are possible. And I know You have called me for a great purpose and I am just floundering around at the moment missing my mark. Lord I need a little lift today. Lift me up, prop me up, help me get my feet on solid ground and allow me to be an effective witness for You once again. I lay this request at your feet, my King.

And in Your sweet, holy name I pray, Amen.

Prayer For Elijah

Dear Heavenly Father,

Lord I give You thanks and praise for my sweet baby son. Today is his birthday. One Year Old...! Praise You, Jesus.

Father God, You are truly an awesome God. I am not really worthy of Your blessings. I still try to do things under my own power. Show me dear Savior what total surrender looks like. I want to be that kind of model for Elijah.

Lord You know that I didn't grow up in a christian family or household. My parents never emphasized a personal relationship with You. I never witnessed a Godly Daddy in action. I want to be the man of God You have called me to be. I want Elijah to have what I didn't have, Lord.

Father God, Bless my little boy. Bless his life. You have blessed him greatly thus far. He has made it one year happy and healthy. Lord I realize that he is Your child first, then mine, Jesus. Thank you for trusting him to me. Help me to a good steward of his life. Help me to be just what he needs Lord. I know I can't do anything apart from You, my King. So I lay this request and kneel at Your feet, my Lord.

I love You Jesus, and I pray these things in Your holy name, Amen.

Prayer For My Co-Workers

Dear Heavenly Father,

Lord, I lift up my co-workers today. We have all been working under a lot of stress. Morale is low. I'm not sure if there is anyone on staff who really knows You. At least it doesn't show in their countenance. But as I write these words I wonder if my relationship with You shows in my own countenance...?

Father God, let me make a difference in my work place. Help me to be encouraging and uplifting during this difficult time. Lord let there be no doubt in anyone's mind that I stand for You.

Lord Jesus I believe that you brought my family here to be salt and light. (And I pray this morning for my own family, also.) Let them not be discouraged by the circumstances around us.

Keep us strong, Father God. Lord I feel that the more we try to be effective for Your Kingdom then the more the evil one attacks.... Shield us. Protect this family with Your holy armor, Lord.

I Love you Jesus. I Praise You my King. It's all about You, Lord.

Martin Luther

Last night my family watched the movie, 'Luther'... For those of you not familiar with 'Luther' I'm referring to 'Martin Luther' the leader of the Great Reformation in the 1500's.

It was a good movie. From the research I've done it seemed fairly historically accurate. After the movie I had touble sleeping, though. I'm not sure it was the movie or the two canned cokes I had at dinner, but maybe it was a combination of both...

Anyway, today I feel more convicted than ever to address a problem that's been troubling me for some time. Sadly, I know many who 'believe' in God, but are dead in their spirit. These beloved are wrapped up in false doctrine, tradition, ritual, and live in ignorance of the bible.

I pray today that I am bold in my witnessing because the eternal destiny of people I hold very dear is at stake. Yet I pray that I am gentle at the same time because witnessing to believers of false doctrine is probably more difficult than witnessing to a non believer.

Dear Heavenly Father,

Lord I thank You and praise You for bold men of faith like Martin Luther. And Father thank You for convicting me with this desire to witness. Indeed Lord, knowing what I know about the Truth... How can I keep silent....? How can anyone keep silent...?

The fact is Lord, every road traveled does NOT lead to heaven.... There is only one way to salvation and that's through a divine personal relationship with YOU, Jesus.

Thank You Lord for going to the cross for my sins and the sins of the world. I love You Jesus, and I recognize that everything I have is of You. I am nothing apart from You, my King.

I appreciate the witness of Martin Luther and pray for my own witness to others.

Father I give this day, I give this life to you. And I pray these things in Jesus' name, Amen.

The Need for Salvation

What is Salvation...? It's being Saved. Rescued. We all need Salvation. But what are we being rescued from...? Answer: Death

There are three kinds of death: Physical, Eternal, and Spiritual.

We can't be spared from physical death. We can maybe postpone it for awhile, but physical death will occur to 100 percent of all life participants.

Eternal Death comes at the end of the age when God judges everyone. At that time those who do not know salvation will be thrown into the lake of fire.

Spiritual death is something we can take care of here on earth. We are all born spiritually dead but as we grow up we can have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. Jesus is our Savior. He is our salvation. We all need Jesus.

But Sadly, many don't think that they need Jesus. Many don't care. Many don't even have a clue... If You are saved and you do know a personal relationship with the Savior don't you feel convicted to explain this news to your friends, family, all those you care about...? How can you keep silent...? You don't want to hurt their feelings...? Well how do you think they'll feel when they are on fire for all eternity...?

We all need Salvation. If You've been saved... If You've been rescued.... You've got to go back and help rescue others....! Don't keep that good news to yourself.

My challenge to all believers today is 'What have you done to advance the kingdom lately...?'

This message was inspired by an article written by Dr Charles Stanley.

Dear Heavenly Father,

Lord Jesus, I love You. I want to help advance the Kingdom, Lord. Please help me with my divine appointments, Father. I want all my friends and family to know the saving grace and security of a right relationship with You. In deed Lord, I hope to share the good news with everyone within my sphere of influence.

Lord Jesus I love You. I trust in You my King. And in Jesus' name I pray, Amen.

I Need Prayer Today

This week will be another big, busy week. I've got tennis camp every day this week and I'm working on two tournaments simultaneously. I also need to market my programs for the fall. Sigh... And I'm under conviction that I'm not really in the middle of God's will for how I'm spending my time. I hardly feel as if I'm making any difference for the Kingdom right now.

I'm feeling distracted, rushed, behind schedule, and I'm just not feeling particularly close to God right now.

Dear Heavenly Father,

Here I am again, Lord. I've been here so many times falling on Your mercy. Lord You know everything. You know what a mess I have made of my schedule. I'm really feeling some intense conviction about my life right now, Lord. And Father, I just pray for Your forgiveness. I pray for direction. Help me to be obedient and focused on You, Lord.

Lord Jesus, help me to grow into the Godly man You have called me to be. Help me to be a better witness, Father. Help me to be bold and courageous. Lord, lead me. Father help me, I can't even pray very well this morning.

But Lord You know my heart. You know how much I love You. Lord I just want to start over. I want to renew my dedication to You. Starting right this minute I'm going to live my life totally devoted to you. Lord I want to live the Extraordinary life that Dr Charles Stanley preaches about all the time. But how can that happen in my current routine...?

I've got to make some serious changes in my life and my life style before it's too late...! I don't know how it's all going to work out but I know You do, Lord. And I just rest in You, Jesus. Only You can get me through this.

Father God, I Thank You and praise You for Your Goodness. Lord Jesus I just lay everything down at Your feet. I am here. I am ready Lord. You Lead, I follow.

And I pray these things in Jesus' name, Amen.

Life is Short and Eternity is Forever...

The title above is taken from a crosswalk.com devotional I was reading this morning. It really does sum up how I feel about witnessing. As I get older I realize more and more how short our time is here on earth and at the end of my life I want be able to say that I have lived a life that has made a difference in the lives of others. Indeed, God has called His body of believers to spread the good news. I'm almost 41 years old. I have come to the realization that I very well may have lived over half my life already. The truth is, since no one knows exactly how long they have here on earth, every minute of every day should be cherished and lived to the fullest extent.

If You think about it Life really is short. One of my favorite songs has a lyric that goes like this:

'Our lives are but vapors....'

In the grand scheme of things how long does a vapor last...? (Not long)

I want to have served a purpose before I am 'vaporized'...!

Take a good long look at your feet. They were given to you for the purpose of serving Jesus-walking in His ways. You don't need to go any farther than to your neighbors, coworkers, or associates. Be a witness in your "Jerusalem," your home territory. As you are faithful there, God will let you know where to go next. He will lead you step-by-step. All you have to do is be willing-to say, "Here am I, Lord; send me!" (Isaiah 6:8-9). You will find yourself being used by Him for the furtherance of His kingdom.

Dear Heavenly Father, if I don't witness to those around me, who will...? Help me to recognize my God-ordained appointments and be about Your business. In my short time here on earth I want to live a life that has made a difference for The Kingdom.

Lord I trust in You. I have faith in You, my King. Just show me, lead me along the path You have prepared for me. I am here, I am willing, Send me, Lord...!

Blessed be Your name, Jesus. Praise You, my Lord and Savior. I love you and I dedicate this day to You. And I pray this in Your Holy Name, Amen.

Prayer for Brother Mark

Christians are called to encourage and pray for one another and this morning I lift up a fellow brother in Christ: Brother Mark. Brother Mark leads our church music department. He recently shared that he has been under severe spiritual attack lately. But praise God, he his hanging in there and remaining faithful. Brother Mark is a Godly man who is a great source of strength and inspiration to our church. It's no wonder that the enemy has singled out Mark and His family for spritual warfare...!

I lift up Mark this morning and pray blessing on he and his family.

Dear Heavenly Father,

Lord, You know what brother Mark is going through. Strengthen him, Father. Shield Him and protect his family from the snares of the evil one. Satan wants nothing more than to discourage, tear down, and thwart the walk of the believer. But Lord we stand strong in You. If You are for us Lord, who can stand against us...? No One, Nothing. Satan is powerless, defeated.

Father God, We stand strong on Your promises to never leave us or forsake us and to never give us more burden than we can handle. Lord we can do anything through the precious blood of Jesus.

My sweet, gentle savior, Lord you can do all things. You know all things. You know Mark's heart, Lord. I pray blessings over Mark today, Lord. I Lift him up to You. I lift His family up. Bless them and bless their ministry.

Lord Jesus I pray these things in Your holy name, amen.

Deuteronomy 5:24

"...The Lord hath showed us His glory..." Deut. 5:24

I've been thinking lately how awesome God is... This whole world is designed to such a complex degree. There is so much diversity of life all around us... How could anyone doubt the existence of a 'Master-Designer'..? Clearly, God's great design in all His works is the manifestation of His own Glory.

I marvel at the uniqueness of it all. Surely we are not here by chance. This world can not be the result of billions of years of evolution. There MUST be a God. And I want to know Him. Lord, I want to know You....!

Dear Heavenly Father, Lord Jesus, today is all about You, my King. Everything I do is done for You, for Your glory. I give You my all because You gave Your all. Father I seek you. I want to know You more. I want to walk closer with You. Lord You created the heavens and earth. You know me. You know my heart, Lord. Father I ask forgiveness for my sins and blessings for my life and for the lives of those I hold dear. Lord I pray that my life be a living testimony to those within my sphere of influence. Father God I love You. And I give this day to You. It's so easy to plug in to You first thing in the morning and right before I go to bed, but Lord help me through the middle of the day hours, I pray. And I pray these things in Jesus' name, amen.

Breaking Free

Tonight Monica, Becky, and I started a new bible study. It's called Breaking Free and it's authored by Beth Moore. It's all about growing closer to Christ and getting out from bondages that ensnare us.

I'm under bondage in several areas. One is 'busy-ness'. That's certainly no secret. I've been fighting that for years. Another area I feel where I'm under bondage is with regard to my diet. And I'm sure there's other strongholds I'm fiacing that I may not even be fully aware of...

Tonight I pray that this study will set me free, transform, and change my life.

Dear Heavenly Father,

Lord I'm seeking you like I never have before. I hunger for Your word, my King. Father I want to rid myself of these shackles that bind me and keep me from realizing my full potential in You. I want to be truly free from the snares of the Evil one.

Lord the bible never records any instance of You rushing around to get somewhere. You did Your thing in Your own perfect time. I want to manage my time better. Tonight I'm breaking my own plan to get to bed early. I've just had too much to do today... And I'm still behind... Now I'll be tired tomorrow, and the viscious cycle will just continue...

Right now I'm not even sleepy. There's just a restlessness about my spirit right tonight and there has been for a few days now. What is it, Lord...? What am I not getting...? What am I missing...? Help me to get my act together.

I want to be obedient to You. I want to follow You, Jesus. I want to be the Godly man you have called me to be. I want to raise up Elijah and Connor to walk closer with You than I ever did as a youth and young adult. Indeed, I see rearing them as my greatest calling.

Father God I humble myself before You. I give You praise and glory. And I pray these things in the power of the name of Jesus Christ,

Amen.

Prayer For The New Week

Last week I concluded my journal with a discussion of getting more rest. I want to honor God with trying to get more rest. I won't be as effective for Christ if I'm walking around tired all the time. Well, I haven't exactly got into a routine, yet. Although I did rest a little bit this weekend, I'd still like to get on a routine of going to bed early and getting up early. Going to bed late and getting up early really wears on a body.

This morning I had planned to get up early and dive right in to my week, but I was so sleepy I just succumbed to sleep and didn't get back out of bed until nearly 6:45 AM...! I did spend some time this morning laying in bed just thumbing through my study bible for a random nugget and I found a solid brick of gold...! It was life principle # 8 in Dr Stanley's study bible.

It said: Fight every battle on your knees and experience victory every time...!

Here Dr Stanley is implying to take our problems to God in prayer and God will listen to us. -Now that's some good encouragement to start off my day....!

Dear Heavenly Father,

Lord I submit to You today. I surrender my spirit. Work through me, Dear Lord. Conform me to Your image. Help me accomplish much today. I must be a good steward of the precious time You have allotted me.

Lord God I lift up my sweet sister Becky today. I've been rough on her. I've been witnessing too aggressively and fear that I may have caused more damage than good. Help me to be kinder, more gentle, and more observant of my sister's spiritual needs.

Father God, Lord I Love you. I give my life to You, my King. Watch Over me. Guide and lead me, Lord. I'm struggling and I need You. I pray these things in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen. .

Prayer for Rest

I've got a big project to complete today. I haven't slept much this week. I've been too busy, the baby hasn't slept well. The Kitty's have been loud at night.... Sigh... Monica's worn out, too. Boy do I need to get my act together. My plan is to get my project finished by noon today, then take a big nap...!

God did leave us instructions regarding our rest, you know. He left specific instructions. Next week I'm going to research every scripture verse that mentions rest and make a report. I think that would be a very good study for me.

Because I have been getting up extra early this week I have been sleeping in guest room so as to not disturb Monica and the baby. Now that my sis is here I have slept in Connor's room the past two nights. At one point, even though I was tired I still couldn't sleep and my bible and devotionals were in the guest room so I started browsing Connor's bookshelf. I came a cross a great book of Charles Spurgeon's morning and evening devotional.

-Now I have to get a copy for myself... -I'm hooked...! Yesterday's evening devotional was particularly enlightening and encouraging...! I'll look forward to reporting the highlights in future posts.

Dear Heavenly Father,

Thank you Lord for the omnipotence of Your love and the infallibility of your wisdom. You are the King of Kings, my Protector, my Savior. Lord today I just rest in You. I've gone out and done it again. I've ran myself ragged and worn myself out physically. And to what end...? Have I advanced the kingdom any...? Not that I can tell.

My prayer today is selfishly all about my family and I... Father God, I pray that I am able to complete my project this morning quickly and correctly. I pray for rest for Monica and myself. I pray for peace for my sis Becky. Lord, I don't like how busy I am but have taken on so many responsibilities I don't how or which ones to prune away, or the best way to go about it.

I need your guidance. I need Your discernment. I need you, Jesus. Lord I love you. And I give this day to You. In Jesus' name I pray, Amen.

Staying Grounded In Prayer

No matter how many difficulties that you may face, remember that God truly does work all things for good to those who are called to His purposes. Be faithful. Be obedient. Pray.

When the going gets tough... PRAY...

When the tough gets going... PRAY...

Pray to Him in good times, Pray to Him in bad times.

Try to keep an onging dialog with Jesus in your mind all day long...!

Stay connected, stay grounded in prayer.


Dear Heavenly Father,

You are my best friend. You are my Lord and Savior. You are everything to me...! Thank You for prayer, Lord. Thank You that You answer prayer. It's no fun to just have a one way conversation. And with that in mind, help me to be quiet sometimes Lord. Help me to hear Your still, small voice.

Father God, I am nothing without You. Hold me close, my King. Guard me, protect my family and I... We place all our trust, all our hope in You, my savior...!

Lord, help me to be a good steward of my time and resources. Help me be a godly witness, Father. Oh Lord I just praise and worship You today. Thank you again for being such mighty God.

I love you and i pray these things in Jesus' name, Amen.

Prayer for Today

Dear Heavenly Father,

Father God, I Love you. I worship You. You are the center of my world, Jesus. I give thanks and praise for another day to love and serve You. I pray that You use me mightily today, my King. I pray that I am salt and light to this hurting world. Let my words be Your words today, Jesus.

Hold captive my thought life today, Lord. Let my thoughts be only of good. Let my words be only encouraging words of life. I pray Father that today the world can see the You in me.

Lord You have blessed me beyond measure and I will never forget it. And I will never forget how You laid down your life for the sake of my salvation.

I give today to you Jesus. I pledge my life to you, Lord. And I pray these things in Your holy name, Amen.

Waiting on God...

Dr Charles Stanley's current series is about God's timing. God is never early, He is never late. He is always right on time. Unfortunately, many times His time table is not my time table.

Right now in my life I'm waiting on God for some answers to some questions. I've been waiting for awhile now. I know I must be strong and wait on the Lord. I must be patient. I must be faithful.

I know that God is always at work behind the scenes preparing me, preparing others, and preparing situations. I know that I can't always see the progress. But I know God is an awesome God and He can do anything and will work all things for good. He stretches us but will not give us more than we can handle.

Praise be the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit...!

Dear Father God, I put all my trust in You, my King. You are my Savior and Redeemer. Jesus, I need You today more than any other day. Hold me up, Lift me up. Get me through this day physically. Get me through this day emotionally, Lord. Help me to be strong and make wise decisions. Help me to be a Godly witness. Help me to be strong and keep waiting on you with eager anticipation...! I praise You, Jesus. You have favored me greatly and blessed me with the kind of life very few people have. I am so grateful for my sweet family. I am so grateful to be an American and live in a land of freedom. I am so grateful for time. I don't want to waste any of Your precious time. Help me to make the most of my time. Help me to be obedient and to do Your will, Lord. I love you and give this day to you. It's a big day, Lord. I have many new tennis students today. I pray for a good day of lessons. Keep me safe on the road this morning as I am very weary. I definitely need traveling mercy today..! Lord Jesus I pray these things in your holy name, Amen.

Life's Too Short: -Thoughts from Ed Young, Jr.

"We don't like to think about it, but our existence on this planet is finite. We have just a few short decades to make our lives count..." -Ed Young, Jr.

I get a weekly devotional from http://www.edyoung.org and this week's topic really grabbed me. Ed's current, thought-provoking series reminds us that life is too short to fill our days, weeks, months and years with attitudes and actions that, in the grand scheme of things, are just a waste of precious time.

Time... Such a precious commodity. Something that I seem to have so little of...

My prayer this morning is that I manage my time well throughout today. -That I impact others for Christ with my words, thoughts, and actions.

Dear Heavenly Father,

Lord Most High, Creator of the Heavens and Earth, hear my cry, Oh God: I am a sinner. I am weak and poor. Forgive my shortcomings, dear precious Savior. Among other things, I have wasted time. (Many times over...)

Lord I recognize how important this brief existence is. Time is such a precious gift. Help me make the most of my time here today. Help me to live a life that makes a difference in the lives of others. Help me to live a life that matters.

Thank You Lord for Godly men like Dr Charles Stanley, Dr Ed Young, and Ed Young, Jr. These men impact my life in a profound way every day. I lift up their ministries to you today, My King.

Thank You Lord for my precious family: Monica, Elijah and Connor. I am greatly blessed by their love. I lift them up to You, Lord. And I pray blessings on the rest of my family here in Texas and around the country. Father I especially lift up my sis Becky and her family today.

Father God, I love you. My day is going to be all about You, my King. Thank You for another day, for a little more time. I pray all these things in Jesus' name, Amen.

To Know Him and to Make Him Known

Pastor Dave at Church used that phrase in his new year's sermon back in January this year. It's really stuck with me and impacted me greatly. Lately I've been focusing on the 'To know Him' aspect of that phrase. I figure that I can't make Him known if I don't really know him that well. Although I seem to be inconsistent in my walk, I'm pressing on none the less...!

You'll notice that I've taken a few days off from my prayer journal. This inconsistency is what I want to address in my discussion today. I've addressed this before but it continues to be on my heart so here it is...

Question: How can I be 'on fire' for Jesus one day and luke-warm the next...?

Answer: Spiritual attack.

I allow myself to get distracted, or I get busy focusing on non kingdom minded actions and activities. I firmly believe that everyone who commits his or her life to Christ is going to experience spiritual warfare. Indeed, they have already undergone a certain degree of spiritual warfare to get the point of accepting Christ. And then that's when the enemy starts to bring in the heavy artillery. The more one tries to know Him and make Him known the more the enemy digs in.

How can one combat this spiritual Warfare...?

Dr Charles Stanley spoke about the importance of solitude and how it impacts one's walk with God. Solitude is quiet time with God. It's not studying scripture, it's not praying. It's alone time with God. It's listening for that still small voice. In my conversations with God it's often one-sided with me doing all the talking. I need to start listening more. I need solitude. I desperately need a regular dose of solitude. Monica does too.

The past few days have been rough. Everyone has been sick with a bad sore throat. It's 4:17 AM and the house is finally quiet. Baby Elijah has been very restless. I finally got him to go to sleep about 30 minutes ago and I pray he sleeps for a good chunk of time so Monica can rest, also. Me...? I can't rest. There's a physical restlessness and a spiritual restlessness within me right now.

I haven't slept much at all the past 48 hours. But I've used this time well to think about the things of God. That's one positve aspect of being physically sick. It forces you to slow down. It forces you to alter your normal routine. That's a good thing if your routine is out of control. Perhaps that is why I am sick.

I think God is trying to get my attention once again. More tomorrow...!

Dear Heavenly Father,

Lord I'm seeking You. I'm struggling. I need healing of every kind. I want to draw closer to you, Lord. Help me. Lift me up. Shield me from this spiritual attack. Lord You are my rock. You are my Redeemer and Champion. I want to know You more and make You known to those around me.

Father God I love You and I give this day to you. I rest in You, my King. And I pray these things in Jesus' name,

Amen