Praying for the other standers as well

This Father's day was another revelation for me.  I had a hard time with the day, knowing that at church the kids would be doing father's day activities and wondering how my son would handle it.  Sure enough, when I picked him up after service the teacher told me he did not want to make a father's day gift, so they offered for him to make something for his "Papa" which he wanted to do instead.  This just broke my heart. 

Later that day I read a devotion that I receive in my e-mail daily from Rejoice marriage ministries (http://rejoiceministries.org/).  This devotional talked about all the dad's out there that are also standers.  Some of these dads are not able to see their children on father's day because their spouse left with the kids.  That broke my heart.  Here I was so consumed with my problems, I failed to recognize that other people may be having a hard time today to, but for different reasons.  I then prayed for those dads, those dads that are standers for their marriage.  What an amazing example they are setting for their children!  A man of God, going against the status quo, praying and standing for their marriage and their family!

It is time for me to quit looking at myself and all my problems, and start praying for others as well.  I have met one or two other women who are standing for their marriage right now as well.  Do you know what they do?  They pray for me!  They encourage me!  Why am I not doing the same?  It is time for me to step out of "my own little world" and start praying for others to.  Of course I will always, always pray for my husband.  But that should not be where my prayers stop.  I need to pray for all the standers out there, and recognize I'm not alone in this. 

Called to Action...

1 John 5:14-15 “Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us.  And if we know that He hears us, whatever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we have asked of Him”. 

Petition, what petitions do we have?  What petitions have we asked of Him? The definition of a petition is- a request made for something desired, especially a respectful or humble request, as to a superior or to one of those in authority.  Another definition includes a supplication or prayer.  Notice the specific condition of the petition definition, a respectful or humble request.  As I listened to the message today during marriage class, the Lord guided me to a revelation of my own, using the same scriptures that the lesson was using.  The lesson topic was a petition, what they mean, and the power behind them.  However, the Lord was showing me that His promises and blessings have conditions attached to them, conditions of action on our part.  Let’s look at the topic for today, a petition.  A petition is not just any request; it is a request that is made out of respect and humility.  Therefore, according to John, we need to show respect and humility through our petition, and draw it according to His will, which in practical language, means we need to include scripture in our petition to make sure it aligns with His word, which in turn, aligns with His will.  Let’s look at some other scriptures, and what the “conditions” are of these scriptures:

James 1:5-6 “If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him.  But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind”. 

What is the condition here?  It is asking for wisdom in faith. Sometimes when we quote this scripture, the part emphasized is the asking of wisdom, but not in faith.  His condition on this freely given wisdom is to ask for it, and receive it, in faith. 

Job 22:28 “You will also declare a thing, and it will be established for you; so light will shine on your ways”. 

What is the condition for it to be established for you?  To declare the thing!  We must declare it!  Declare it verbally, declare it in a petition, declare it to your God, to your friends, to the enemy!  Notice He is asking us to do something!

Luke 6:38 “Give, and it will be given to you; good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be put into your bosom.  For with the same measure that you use, it will be measured back to you”. 

The condition here is for us to give! Do we need something given to us?  Are we desperate for an answer?  Give, and in the same measure it will be measured back to you.  I believe the giving in this scripture can be for more than just financial.  Do you need friendship?  Then give friendship!  Do you revelation from God?  Then give him your time, your heart, your ears to hear from Him! Do you need a breakthrough financially? Then give financially!  Do you need your prodigal child to come home?   Give to another’s prodigal child!  There is a condition, and it is measured out and in the same. 

Malachi 3:10 “Bring all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house, and try Me now in this”.  

What is the condition to test the Lord on?  To bring the tithe to the storehouse.  The Lord has told us to test Him on tithing, but we are to bring our tithes to the storehouse.  We test him in our finances, ask for his provision, but are we following what He has asked us to do as a condition to the test?  Are we truly bringing our tithes to the storehouse?   

This last one is one of my favorites:

Psalm 37:4 “Delight yourself also in the Lord, and He shall give you the desires of your heart”. 

I was always so quick to quote this scripture to the Lord during my prayer times.  Reminding him that He promised to give me the desires of my heart, until one day the Lord asked me to really read that scripture.  That is when I was opened up to the condition to that promise.  I must delight myself in Him, only then will He give me the desires of my heart.

Remember, in Numbers 23:19, it says that God is not a liar.  In reality He can’t lie, it is against His very nature.  Also, in Isaiah 55:11 we are told that God’s Word does not return void, but his Word is His full Word, the conditions AND the promises.  God is not moved by need, He is moved by faith.  Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. 

16th Annual International Marriage Conference

Renewed, Refeshed, Revived!

I had an opportunity to go up to the mountains this weekend with my kids to our family cabin.  As I was making the 2 hour drive, I prayed that this would be a renewed time with the Lord.  I asked the Lord to help me with my bitter and spiteful heart I have had towards my husband the past couple of weeks.  I prayed the Lord would use this time to soften my heart, and show me my husband through His eyes. 

As always, the Lord was faithful this weekend.  I don't know how, or the exact moment when it happened, but I came away this weekend with a fresh sense of hope for my stand.  I have compassion for my husband instead of hatred, and I have started praying for him again. 

I have to continue to keep my eyes on the Lord.  That is the time when I feel most at peace.  This is what my husband did, but this is NOT who he is!  I claim that, I claim that over my family.  So I continue my walk, my walk in faith. 

The Lord also reminded me how much I need to focus on myself, and not my circumstances.  I need to walk in peace with Him, the only one that can give me the peace I so desperately look for. 

I started reading the Psalms out loud this weekend.  I take one Psalm a day, and I read it out loud.  Sometimes it comes out like a prayer from my soul.  Sometimes it comes out like making a statement of faith.  My 5 year old son came over to me this weekend when I was reading the Psalm of the day out loud.  He looked at me kind of weird, but I didn't stop.  What a great example I am setting for him at that perfect moment!  He then came over and laid on my lap and just listened, silently, as I continued to read the Psalm, like a statement of my faith. 

What an amazing, refreshing, weekend I had.  The Lord spoke to me, and renewed and refreshed me.  Oh how I need that!  I needed a new perspective, a fresh walk.  I need constant reminder from the Lord on the reasons why I am supposed to stand.  The pressures of the world constantly remind me why I shouldn't stand, but the quiet stillness of the Lord reminds me why I do, and why I will. 

The Patience of the Lord

Patience, a virtue of God.  How patient God is with us.  He stands right there next to us, waiting for us to submit to Him.  We are the ones that move away, He stays. 

I think about this weekend, and once again, my lack of faith.  I question everything the Lord has proven faithful to me time and time again.  I question why I'm still standing, I question why I am suppose to stand.  Yet, deep down inside I know I am supposed to be standing, for reasons beyond my grasp. 

The Lord is so patient with me as I continue to seek out His answers.  He reminds me of the same promises that He has already shared with me.  He reminds me of the faithfulness He has already proven to me. 

Like a child, I continue to ask the same questions, and like the perfect parent He is, He gives me the same answers, without ridicule, without frustration. 

1 Peter 5:7- Cast all your anxieties on Him, for He cares about you.

Harm vs. Hurt

I've joined the single mom's group at my church.  This was a hard step, but helpful at the same time.  I've never wanted to admit that I am a single mom, because it was not by choice to be a single mom.  However, I am a single mom, and I need support.  This group has been helpful for me to see that I am not alone.  There is not one person in the group who is a single mom by choice.

I am responsible for teaching the next lesson for the group, so I was given the material to study out of the book we are working through.  As I read the chapter last night, I came upon a section that really spoke to me.  The section was about harm vs. hurt and how we tend to get the two mixed up in our lives.  What is considered harmful?  Just because someone is hurt by something, does that mean it harms them?  The book used an example of the dentist.  When the dentist is filling a cavity in your tooth, does it hurt? Yes, it does.  Does it harm you?  No, it doesn't, it is actually helping you fix the tooth.  Now, think about when you ate the sugar that caused the cavity, did it hurt to eat that sugar?  No, it didn't.  However, did that sugar harm you?  Yes, it did, because it caused a cavity.  The book ended the chapter with: "Just because something hurts you, does not mean it harms you, in fact, it might be a good thing for you.  However, something that seems good, may harm you".  Wow, how powerful is that?

The Lord is with us, regardless of our feelings

So this weekend has been a struggle for me.  My faith in standing has been wavering quite a bit.  All my selfish desires, my selfish motives creep in every chance they get.  Its sad because even though I know it is selfish and not of God, I still allow it!  This is when I have to once again put my trust in the Lord, and give it to him.  Several times this weekend I had to stop what I was doing and sit down and just talk with God.  I shared with Him how I was feeling, even though it was wrong to feel this way.  He knows how we feel all the time, so why not tell Him?

This morning driving to work, I had so many negative thoughts running through my head.  I was so frustrated, why God, why?  How long do I have to be miserable?  How long do I have to take the brunt of everything? 

After reading some scripture once I arrived to work, I had this overwhelming sense of peace pour over me.  It was like an instantanious calming feeling.  The Lord had sent His peace over me.  In spite of all my negativity, questioning of his competence, He still loved me enough to give me peace.  He then reminded me of a quote I have hanging on my bathroom mirror:

"The longer I live, the more I realize the impact of attitude on life.   Attitude, to me, is more important than facts. It is more important than the past, than education, than money, than circumstances, than failures, than successes, than what other people think or say or do. It is more important than appearance, giftedness, or skill. It will make or break a company ... a church ... a home.

The remarkable thing is we have a choice every day regarding the attitude we will embrace for that day. We cannot change our past. We cannot change the fact that people will act in a certain way. We cannot change the inevitable.

The only thing we can do is play on the one string we have, and that is our attitude ... I am convinced that life is 10% what happens to me, and 90% how I react to it. And so it is with you ... we are in charge of our Attitudes." - Charles Swindoll