Dee2rites Blog

Tag: prayer

  • WHY I’M NOT TOTALLY GREY – PART 2

    Last week on my post “Why I’m Not Bald and Totally Grey” I talked about praying for my children. It occurred to me that maybe I should share some of the scriptures I used in praying for them, and that I continue to pray for them and for my grandchildren. There are too many to list all in one post so here are some of the ones I used most frequently. I didn’t pray every scripture I knew every day; I just allowed God to lead me and prayed according to the need of that day.

    Both of my children came to know the Lord and made Jesus their Savior at an early age, but until they did, I prayed for their salvation.

    “They replied, ‘Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved – you and your household.’” (Acts 16:31, New International Version)

    Then, I prayed for their obedience to God, and this one is highlighted in all my Bibles. “And all your [spiritual] children shall be disciples [taught by the Lord and obedient to His will], and great shall be the peace and undisturbed composure of your children.” (Isaiah 54:13, The Amplified Bible)

    “It is written in [the book of] the Prophets, ‘And they shall all be taught of God [have Him in person for their Teacher].’ Everyone who has listened to and learned from the Father comes to Me-” (John 6:45, The Amplified Bible)

    I prayed this over them every day, calling them by name, praying that they would be obedient to the Lord and taught by the Holy Spirit. I continue to pray this for my children and grandchildren still today, that they will be obedient to God.

    Next I prayed for their protection, that God would send His angels to watch over them as He’s promised in His Word. And again, this is one I continue to pray for them.

    “See that you do not look down on one of these little ones. For I tell you that their angels in heaven always see the face of my Father in heaven.” (Matthew 18:10, New International Version)

    “For He will give His angels [especial] charge over you to accompany and defend and preserve you in all your ways [of obedience and service]. (Psalm 91:11, The Amplified Bible)

    The most powerful thing we can do for our children is to pray for them. Cover them daily with our prayers, asking God’s protection over them – spirit, soul and body. God’s written Word is His perfect will. When we pray His Word, we are praying in His will. This is how we lay hold of His promises, but it has to be in faith. If we don’t believe His Word true, or that He will keep His Word for us, then it’s to no avail.

    The Book of James says, “Only it must be in faith that he asks with no wavering (no hesitating, no doubting). For the one who weavers (hesitates, doubts) is like the billowing surge out at sea that is blown hither and thither and tossed by the wind.” (James 1:6, the Amplified Bible)

    There are times when we have to believe the Word more than we believe what we see. Our children may not always act saved, they may not always act like “disciples, taught of the Lord” but that is when we exercise our muscle of faith, and believe God’s Word is true no matter what. I know one young man who was delivered from drugs, all because his mother and father refused to give up. They continued praying and believing God. Today he’s a minister of the gospel.

    Beloved, God loves you and He loves your children. What He’s done for others, He’ll do for you.

    Peace and blessings.
    Dee

  • Our Time to Live

    “Like an open book, you watched me grow from conception to birth;

    All the stages of my life were spread out before you,
    The days of my life all prepared before I’d even lived one day.” (Psalm 139:16 The Message Bible)

    I love history. I love reading about what life was like centuries ago and wonder what I would have been had I lived in another time and place. I imagine myself on a sailing ship crossing the ocean from my ancestors’ home in Wales to the new country. It’s easy to romanticize another time and place, forgetting the hardship they endured then. God put me here and now for a reason.

    Today’s society has its own hardships. There are cures and treatments for diseases that once killed people, but medical care is expensive and without insurance, it is out of reach for too many people. Our food is safer than ever but the grocery shelves are lined with junk foods to temp us and we destroy our bodies by eating the wrong kinds of foods. One hundred years ago more households had live-in help than in-door bathrooms with running water. Today Americans consider bathrooms and proper plumbing a necessity, not the luxury it still is in parts of the world today.

    God knew what our lives would be like even before we were born. He knew the generation we would be part of. He knew what would be required of us to live in this age. Our lives were planned by God before we were born and He equipped us for this time. He planned for us to be here, now, for a divine purpose and part of His plan.

    Teach me Your way, Father. Let my life fulfill Your purpose. In Jesus Name, Amen.

    Peace and blessings.
    Dee

  • My Prayer Today

    Speak to me, Lord. Don’t let the noise around me drown out what You’re saying. Even when I’m doing what I believe You’ve called me to do, let me still hear what You have to say about it.
    Keep my feet on the right path. Don’t let me go aside after what is less than Your best for me. There are just so many voices out there giving their opinion, telling me I need to do this or that. Telling me that I should give up what they don’t see as productive or profitable.
    My desire is to only hear Your voice. To only do what You call me to do. I know You’ve promised that if I acknowledge You in all my ways that You will direct my paths. (Proverbs 3:6). Your Word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path. (Psalm 119:105)
    Thank you Father that Your Word never fails and that You are not a man and cannot lie.
    In Jesus Name I pray,
    Amen
    Peace and Blessings
    Dee

  • NEWS OF THE DAY

    It seems like that every time you hear the news on television or the radio, or see a newspaper or business magazine, all they talk about is how bad the economy is and how many people are losing their jobs. “We’re in a recession” says one. “We’re in a depression” says another. “We’ve got inflation and prices are going up.” “This company is laying of 100’s of people.” “This company is closing.”  It’s no wonder people are so worried and fearful – all they’re being fed is bad news.


    All this bad news is making people sick. It’s adding stress upon stress and stress contributes to heart disease, arthritis, migraines, stomach disorders and weight gain just to list a few. Stress over financial problems can contribute to marital problems that lead to divorce. Well, here is the good news for today.


    “And my God will meet all your needs according to His glorious riches in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 4:4, NIV)


    God is not short on supply and there is no economic crisis in heaven. He uses gold for pavement, remember? God is the source of creativity. He created the heavens and the earth and everything in it. He is wisdom. If you are a child of God, His spirit is in you and will give you the creativity, the wisdom you need for any situation. Not only that, He also promises to meet our material needs if only we will trust Him and put Him first in our lives.


    “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes?
    Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?
    Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?
    “And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin.
    Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?
    So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’
    For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them.
    But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.
    Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”     (Matthew 6: 25-34, NIV)


    These are the words of Jesus. You are more important to Him than the birds. You are more important to Him than the grass or the flowers. He’s promised to take care of you. When the talking heads on TV start preaching doom and gloom and spreading their bad news, you can replace the thoughts of fear with God’s Word and His promises to provide. Jesus didn’t say He would take care of you “If the economy is good” or “as long as you have a job”. No, the only condition to His promises is that you trust Him and seek Him first.


    Psalms 112 describes the person who trusts God and delights in His Word. Verses 7-8 says: “He will have no fear of bad news; his heart is steadfast, trusting in the Lord. His heart is secure, he will have no fear…”


    Lord God, today I will serve you first and I put my trust in You. Thank you for promising to provide all my needs. Amen


    Peace and blessings
    Dee

  • The Gift of Grace

    Dee opening her gifts
    Dee opening her gifts

    Last Sunday was my birthday. On the preceding Friday night, the family gathered to have my birthday party. We had pizza and cake, the usual birthday fare. Then they let me open my gifts. My 9 – almost 10-year old grandson Christopher proudly handed me a gift bag which contained his gift to me. I reached in a pulled out a book. I thanked him with a hug and started to put the bag aside to open the next gift. “Wait, there’s more, Mom,” my son told me. Surely enough, there were two more parts in the gift bag – two Christmas ornaments that Christopher had picked out for me by himself. I’d almost set aside the most cherished part of my gift.

    Growing up in a Baptist church, I thought I had learned all there was about grace. After all it was preached regularly.

    “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God” Ephesians 2:8

    “Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus:” Romans 3:24

    We receive our salvation through God’s grace. A favorite line used in teaching grace is “God’s Riches At Christ’s Expense”. This is true but it doesn’t end there. Too often evangelicals tend to overlook the rest of the gifts God has for us in our “gift bag” called grace. But there is more. So very much more.

    “That being justified by his grace, we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life.” Titus 3:7

    “Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.” Hebrews 4:16

    “But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, establish, strengthen, settle you.”1 Peter 5:10

    These are just a few of the promises that are ours as part of our gift of grace. There is one in particular that I’m clinging to these days. One has become my prayer almost hourly.

    “And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. 2 Corinthians 12:9

    Paul was talking about the thorn in the flesh he dealt with in his life. I too am learning to how to deal with a thorn in the flesh. It’s not a physical thorn (and Paul’s may not have been either) but it is a difficult situation. I’m having a hard time adjusting to my new job. It’s been a rough adjustment the past few months. I left a job that I’d enjoyed most of the time, and where I had considerable responsibilities and some authority. Then I was home, job hunting, and spending the better part of my days working on my writing pursuits. Now I have a job that I’m very thankful for, but it is very different from anything I’ve ever done before. I struggle every day. Not to mention the fact that I have almost no time for my writing.

    Last week I was asking the Lord if I’d gotten it wrong and had taken a job too quickly or taken the wrong job. But the answer was clear. “My grace is sufficient”. God gives us grace to handle the hard things we face every day. He gives us grace to do what we don’t feel equipped to handle.

    I’m also having to learn humility and am beginning to understand the connection between humility and grace. The greater part of my struggle with my new job is not the level of difficulty in learning a new job, but with the level of authority I have. Or I should say don’t have. I am learning how to be humble and take direction instead of giving direction. It’s a tough lesson but one God makes clear I am to learn.

    “But he giveth more grace. Wherefore he saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble.” James 4:6

    When I try to do it all in my own ability, I struggle and become frustrated. But when I submit to God, and allow his grace to flow through me, I can do all things.

    “Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.” Proverbs 3:5 and “I can do all things through Christ which strengthens me,” Philippians 4:13

    Amen.

    Peace and Blessings to you all.

  • Don’t Forget, but Step Away

    Bless the Lord, O my soul; and all that is within me, bless His holy name,”

    begins the 103 Psalm.

    For years now this has been one of my favorites and often I begin my prayer time with this Psalm. When you read through it, it reminds us of everything we have in Christ.

    Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits”

    continues the psalmist.  It goes on to list all the things the writer was thankful for – healing, salvation, deliverance, renewal. The word bless means to praise or to speak well of.  The psalmist is speaking well of his God, praising Him for “all his benefits”.  Usually as I pray, I recite the Psalm as written but sometimes I find myself just reciting it, as if by rote not really paying attention to what I’m saying. But when I start sincerely “blessing the Lord” and really thinking about all His benefits in my life, right now, today, that is when I begin to worship the Lord for Who He is.

    I know the power of Word based prayers because when we pray back to God His Word, we are in perfect agreement with with His will. But there are times when we need to “step away” from the Word and just lay out our hearts before the Almighty God.

    :

  • Question without Doubt

    “Will the Lord cast off forever? And will He be favorable no more? Has His mercy ceased forever? Has His promise failed forevermore? Has God forgotten to be gracious? Has He in anger shut up His tender mercies?” Psalm 77:7-9 (NKJV)

    There are times when it feels like God has abandoned us. There are situations where there are no easy answers and we’re just at a loss to understand why. It’s dishonest when Christians try to pretend they never have problems and never question God. We all do it. Questioning God is not the same thing as doubting God. We have a right to question sometimes – and God has the right to not give us the answer we’re wanting at the time we want it.

    I have a precious friend whose little grandson has been battling leukemia for more than two years. I read her emails and talk to her on the phone and I feel the pain she and her family are in. Why does a young child have to suffer? Why does an ugly disease have to attack a precious family who love God and trust Him to care for their children? Why have all our prayers for healing not been answered? These are all valid questions and I have no answers.

    What I do know is that the God I serve is a loving and just God. I know His written word says that “whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them.” Mark 11:23 (NKJV) and “Is anyone among you sick? Let him call the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise him up. James 5:14, 15 (NJKV).

    I will keep praying, asking and believing. And I will love my friend. I will listen to her questions and I will pass them on to our Heavenly Father. In due time we will receive.

    Peace and blessing to you all.

    Dee