When times are tough, what comes out of my mouth? What am I wrestling with? Is my first thought---I am a SERVANT of God. Phil 1:1. That's what Paul says about his being in prison in Philippi. I love it! And what rolls off his tongue and ink is: "I am sure of THIS that He who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.
I hold each of you in my heart for we are ALL partakers of Grace whether it is in our difficult times of imprisonment OR in defense of the Gospel. Phil 1:7. How beautiful is that!
And my PRAYER for each of you is THIS that "your love may abound more and more with knoweldge and discernment---to HIS praise and glory! Phil 1:9.
Just like Job worshipped in Job 1:20 in the midst of his unspeakable loss of the death of his 10 children, Paul worshipped in a prison cell. And he prayed. And he waited. And he did not demand for God to come through like he thought he should. And he believed that the Gospel advanced just like it did last night in a horrific shooting in Aurora, Colorado.
"For to me to live is what? What am I really saying by how I live? What is life to me? For me to live is Christ and to die is gain. Phil 1:21 The war horse is a false hope for salvation. Psa 33:17.
His Eye is on you this day. Psa 33:18. Let us go to our Exceeding Joy and worship. Psa 43:4
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ReplyDeletePhillipians 2-30, "Only let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear of you that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving side by side for the faith of the gospel, and not frightened in anything by your opponents. This is a clear sign to them of their destruction, but of your salvation, and that from God. For it has been granted to you that for the sake of Christ you should not only believe in him but also suffer for his sake, engaged in the same conflict that you saw I had and now hear that I still have."
ReplyDeleteI am praying for you, Bev. as you walk your precious Brooke down the aisle.
I am praying for Nise, as you walk through life's trials.
I am praying for Mary Lou, faithful and true to our God.
I am praying for Annette, as you hold your precious granddaughter and dedicate her to God. Breathe in her sweet baby smell. Treasure this day, and this memory.
I pray for Twinkle, I thought of you with especially today. I haven't heard from you for such a long time. I enjoyed our time together at the ranch. You have such a sweet spirit.
I am praying for Ang, you are a blessing to the pearls.
And I pray for our men, praying for us, loving us and silently reading our thoughts, concerns and prayer requests. I thank God for you, dear men. I pray you will continue to be strong in the Lord, looking for direction as you provide love, encouragement and leadership roles in your homes, church and community.
I pray for all the pearls who do not comment. Don't feel that you need to, you are pearls of great price, you are loved. I pray for you and your families today.
Amen and amen.
That was beautiful, Jan. Thank you.
ReplyDeleteHow I pray for those touched in any way by the shooting in Colorado. I pray that people will be drawn to the great I AM. He is the only One who can give comfort and hope in a situation such as this.
May we each one seek His face, not for what we want. May I shrink in our prayers and may they be replaced by I AM's. Ann Voskamp's post yesterday is such a blessing. If you can pull up her blog, Holy Experience or connect with her on FB, do....she is a blessing from God. Just as Bev and the other pearls on this site are. All of you always point me to God and have added so much to my spiritual life. God is so good.
May we all seek The Only One who can lift us up. May we reflect Him and bring Him glory. My pastor's wife so radiates His glory, oh, to shine for Him as she does.
Blessed week end Pearls. Annette what a sweet time to see your first grandchild given to God. May all involved be dedicated to bringing her up in the nurture and admonition of our Lord. Bev, may the next week be full of sweet, loving memories. What two great events that our Lord blesses.
Yesterday when I arrived, I lost my wallet on a string. I only arrived with the string. It was found after hours---in a very weird place. Today, I lost my cell phone---iPhone--- never to be found in Target again. Lost over 1,000 pictures that I didn't have saved anywhere else as I was waiting to learn how to do iCloud in August. Lost ALL of my cell phone #s---YIKES---I had backup assistant but didn't know that Apple doesn't recognize it. Stuck. My first response was more OH NO rather than worship. Oh me! Hard to get by a wedding week with no phone, no camera.
ReplyDeletePS - I think this MOB needs prayer. Too frazzled.
ReplyDeleteJan, your comments really touched me at the end of this predicament of a day. Thank you!
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