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While Praying The Rosary, I saw bombs exploding by the Western Wall in Israel.  I saw soldiers in America.  I saw an exhausted soldier laying down on a stone wall near the Western Wall.

Prepare, Pray & Be Ready!

“I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.  Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect”-Romans 12:1-2

The safest place for all of us, today and tomorrow, is God’s Will. We need to always end our prayers “thy will be done”.

And remember, God never sends us where His Grace will not sustain us 🙂

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““Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint and dill and cumin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faithfulness. These you ought to have done, without neglecting the others.”-Matthew 23:23

In Matthew 23:23, Jesus is explaining to us that while tithing at church is important, so to is sharing and living a life of “justice and mercy and faithfulness” In fact, Jesus says it’s more important to live a life of “justice, mercy and faithfulness”.

How many times do we go to church and see people cut each other off in the parking lot to get out just a bit faster. Or go to the grocery after church and see someone who was at church with their nose up in the air? These are not acts of “justice and mercy and faithfulness”.

Instead, letting someone out in the parking lot before you or chatting and smiling with others in line at the grocery; these are the acts of a person who truly is living a faithful life. Why? Because they are loving others!

We are on this earth to serve God. In serving God we serve others. And the service that we give will give us more joy than we can imagine 🙂

So today, pause and look around. Is there anyone you see that could use a kind word?

Prepare, Pray & Be Ready 🙂

” Yet your people say, ‘The way of the Lord is not just,’ when it is their own way that is not just.   When the righteous turns from his righteousness and does injustice, he shall die for it.   And when the wicked turns from his wickedness and does what is just and right, he shall live by this.  Yet you say, ‘The way of the Lord is not just.’ O house of Israel, I will judge each of you according to his ways.’ “-Ezekiel 33: 17-20

Prepare, Pray & Be Ready!

Sometimes, it almost seems as if evil is winning, but nothing could be further from the truth.  It may appear so for a time, but in the end God WILL Triumph! And because God IS Just and Fair – Those who need to face consequences-Will:

^“I also will choose their delusions, and will bring their fears upon them; because when I called, none did answer; when I spake, they did not hear: but they did evil before mine eyes, and chose that in which I delighted not.  Hear the word of the Lord, ye that tremble at his word; Your brethren that hated you, that cast you out for my name’s sake, said, Let the Lord be glorified: but he shall appear to your joy, and they shall be ashamed.”  Isaiah 66:4-5

“For, behold, the Lord will come with fire, and with his chariots like a whirlwind, to render his anger with fury, and his rebuke with flames of fire. For by fire and by his sword will the Lord plead with all flesh: and the slain of the Lord shall be many.”-Isaiah 66:15-16

But while God speaks of the consequences that many will face, God also speaks of comforting us:

“As one whom his mother comforts, So I will comfort you;
And you shall be comforted in Jerusalem.” When you see this, your heart shall rejoice, And your bones shall flourish like grass; The hand of the Lord shall be known to His servants, And His indignation to His enemies.”-Isaiah 66: 13-14

In other words, God’s Got Us, for God is that Merciful 🙂

God ends Isaiah 66, with Hope for us 🙂 For even though this is the Old Testament, God talks of the New Heaven and the New Earth that He will make. Our Father goes on to say, “And it shall come to pass That from one New Moon to another, And from one Sabbath to another, All flesh shall come to worship before Me,” says the Lord.”-Isaiah 66:23

Even in the Old Testament, God gives us Hope 🙂

Prepare, Pray, & Be Ready!

Prayer is so many things. But perhaps one of the most important things we need to realize is that we don’t have to “feel like” praying, to pray. God is good. God is worthy, whether we feel like it or not. We are saved not because of how we feel every single day, but because of who we choose to follow every single day 🙂

We can pray so many ways. In the morning when we have out quiet time with God before the day starts. While we are enjoying our first cup of coffee of the day. When we say Thank You for a beautiful sunrise or sunset or a beautiful landscape. When we see a Rainbow and are reminded that God Keeps His Promises! There is “Popcorn Prayer” and serious prayer.

There are the prayers we pray before we sleep. We pray for Help; We pray for Hope; We pray for Forgiveness and to Forgive others as God Forgives us; And we Pray to give Thanks. But there are even more prayers, such as when we tell God about our day or share our dreams and worries or when we simply listen to God. Sometimes we have so much on our plate, all we can manage is “Help and Thank You” (Max Lucado). And that is okay, God understands. And God has love and compassion for us 🙂

Another point about prayer is to end our prayers with, “God’s Will Be Done”. This is so very important. We only know what we need, or think we need, today. But God knows all of our tomorrows and exactly what we truly need. And God loves us so much. We need to learn to Trust that God will provide for us not always with what we want, but always with what we need! And sometimes He just knows better that we do what that is…

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight”-Proverbs 3:5-6

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What is often? Often is more than once a week or even once a day. Some people pray as often as they breathe. In other words, all the time. Some people pray several times a day.

When do they find the time? You might ask, lol. After all, life can seem so busy!

But prayer doesn’t only have to be in the early morning hours or when we are in bed. Although those are both good times :). Prayer can also be during our drive to work or school-or back home at night. It can be during a break in the day, during our household chores, during family times, during a walk outside…In other words, it can be any time we choose 🙂

The truth is Prayer can be almost any time because God is ALWAYS listening and waiting for you to talk with Him 🙂

Prepare, Pray & Be Ready!

Penitent Prayer

In the KJV Bible that I have, there is a picture of Ezra prostrated in prayer with the below caption:

“Ezra was burdened and ashamed to face his Creator because of the compromise of God’s people. Compromise in the Christian takes away his confidence before God.”

Since we are all sinners, we’ve all been there.  We convince ourselves that a tiny compromise in choosing to do what we want, rather than what the Bible teaches us, won’t harm us.  But it does.

When we finally decide to repent, we take our sin to Jesus and He forgives us.  And we are so Blessed that He does.  But sometimes, we find it harder to forgive ourselves!  Our own feelings of guilt remain and we find ourselves running back to Jesus asking Him for forgiveness again when He has already forgiven us!  Jesus’ forgiveness is absolute and it is forever.  What we really need to ask Jesus is to help us forgive ourselves!

In the above writing about Ezra.  It is our own feelings of guilt that “takes away” our “confidence” before God.  This is one reason why it is so important to avoid any type of compromise. 

We know what the Bible teaches, and we need to follow God’s Teachings.  Because when we do, we can meet our Lord unburdened and with confidence 🙂

The Day of Christ’s Return will be here before we know it.

Prepare, Pray & Be Ready!

A friend sent me this and I thought it so wonderful, I just had to share. We say quite a bit about the need for prayer, but not nearly enough about how to pray 🙂

“Once upon a time, when some children in a family were growing up, the family had regular devotional times of sharing God and studying His Word . During these special moments of giving our Heavenly Father, Son, and Holy Spirit Glory and Honor, they would have what they called “Popcorn Prayer” time. Everyone randomly called out a name or situation that needed prayer in no special order! This gave all the family plenty of chances to pray out loud and often. Prayer is not a ritual that depends on closing eyes, to kneel or sit. We can pray even while walking or working. Our Heavenly Father responds to a one or two word cry for help, just like He does a focused prayer time after reading Scripture. Praying doesn’t have to be complicated. God delights in any simple words we offer Him. We should just pray fervently, with all our heart, mind and spirit.

Whether you have had a personal relationship with God for years or you are only beginning to discover who Jesus is, we all need guidance when it comes to prayers, It’s often hard to find words to pray. That is why before we pray, we should always ask our Lord to send His Holy Spirit as our Helper and Guide. This involves various topics including worry, anxiety, doubt, forgiveness, fear, and other areas of life where we need to ask for God’s help. Sometimes just admitting to your Father that you are at a loss for words. That you are not sure how to pray for this difficult situation. But you know His Promise that He hears your prayers and you want to try praying now. The best part of praying IS that when you send your prayers, Jesus Christ intervenes and helps us to send our request to His Father in heaven!

My thoughts and prayers are that you allow the Holy Spirit to help and guide you in your prayers. That through the world’s chaos and confusion, feeling like drowning in your circumstances, you receive the Strength and Peace that only God can give. That right now and  always, you choose to Trust and Rest in your Heavenly Father. In Jesus’ Name. Thy Will be done. Amen. Peace.”