Praise as a Protector

2 Samuel 22:4:  "I call upon the LORD, who is worthy to be praised,  and I am saved from my enemies. 

He is so worthy of praised. I really don't do it enough throughout the day to tell him how great he is. We praise the works of great men like Albert Einstein, Thomas Edison, Mark Twain, doctors, lawyers, writers, inventors, but hasn't God done all those things and more. Hasn't He written books. He had scribes to write for him, nevertheless, He wrote them. He created/invented the Heavens and the Earth, all creatures,  and ME and You. He's a doctor, a lawyer, a counselor, a parent, a friend, a protector and a banker.  He is the Great I AM.  He is so worthy of praise.  Praise causes him to look on us with pleasure!

Here is something I learned a while back. The more we praise, the more his presents is revealed.  Psalm 22:3  But Thou art holy, O Thou that inhabits the praises of Israel.

I had a crazy vision one time, during my quite time when I was thinking about this verse.   I remembered a song by the Christian group, the Imperials. Russ Taff sang the song,  Praise the Lord;  He can work with those who praise Him,
                  Praise the Lord;  For our God inhabits praise,
                  Praise the Lord;  For the chains that seem to bind you
                  Serve only to remind you that they drop powerless behind you
                 When you praise him.
Suddenly, I could picture God surfing a wave of praises and with his sword in his hand and He's is calling back to his army of angels warriors, "Come on boys, the praises are high."  I realize this may sound childish,even foolish, to many but there is a verse that God uses the foolish things of the earth to teach those wise in their on eyes. I can picture Fear, Anger, or  Depression turning and running for its life when I praise God and give Him something to ride on.   God showed me that when I praise,  he sends his angel army  to defend me and protect me from the enemy. That is so exciting for me. I don't have to suffer with depression or anxiety, or anger, and self-pity. That is where the enemy, Satan, wants you. Then He showed me this verse,  Form the lips of children and infants, you have ordained praise because of your enemies, to silence the foe and the avenger. Psalm 8:2.  

How glorious  to know we have a God that will protect us in all circumstances.

Praise as a weapon

Psalm 149:6-7   May the praise of God be in their mouths and a double-edged sword in their hands, to inflict vengeance on the nations and punishment on the peoples. 

Praise is a powerful weapon in the battle for our emotions.  Lifting our hands, singing shouting, crying to the Lord can be a humbling experience. But when we do choose to praise him, we are inviting him to work through us, to battle for us. Having praise as a weapon is exciting to me.  I have a weapon against against fear, anxiety, insecurity, depression, anger. Those emotions don't hurt anybody except me. I've realized that they are not part of my personality, why would I want to hang on to them.  When a situation in the physical realm rears its ugly head to cause us to feel those ungodly emotion,  a battle for dominance begins in the spiritual realm.  I have to choose to pick up my weapon of Praise.  It is greater then any two-egde sword.  My circumstances may not change right away, but my attitude will.

Not to long ago, my mother and I had a fight that caused us not to speak to one another for several days.  We both had said things that hurt each other.  One evening, as I was wallowing in my own self-pity, I began to feel" the nudge".  You know the nudge from God when he wants you to do something.  "No way. God, you heard the things she said to me. I am too angry."  I felt the feeling in my spirit to pray for her. "I don't want too pray for my mother. I just want to stay here in my anger, hurt and miserable feelings for a while longer". (Like that would fix her -right?)   Can you picture this argument?  Can you guess whose going to win? Still the burden to pray for her would not let up, instead it just got stronger. So I started of grudgingly. "I praise you." I praise you." "I praise you."  This went on for several minutes. Now granted not everyone has this experience, but this is what helped me.  Then I started in on the things that were good in my life; praising and thanking him for who he is and want he has done.  The next thing I knew I was praising him for my mother and that led into praying for her the way he wanted me to pray for her.

Have a blessed day!

Thoughts on Praise -Part 1

Acts 16:26  About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing praises to God, while the other prisoners listened.


Life is good, right now. No drama from my middle schooler. No car accidents from my college kid. And my husband's chronic back pain is manageable. Praise the Lord. My husband received a bonus not too long ago. PRAISE the Lord. And our 23 year marriage is pretty good, no major meltdowns from my 14 year-old and the 20 year old recently got a job! Praise the Lord.


Not too long ago, it wasn't so easy to praise the Lord.  Within a 3 month period,  my son was in his second car accident, (fender bender, his fault, but not hurt) and received another speeding ticket. He's a great kid but his head had come unscrewed.  Then my daughter's best friend of 11 years decided she did not want to be her friend at all anymore. I cried with Laura for a day or two then we had to say enough and move on. Then this same "friend"  started bullying, total change of personality.  My daughter and I had to keep reminding ourselves of God's love for her.   There are other things too, money doesn't seem to stretch as far as it once did and of coarse all the cars had problems that needed fixing at the same time.   Needless to say, praising God was tougher. (i know they are those in worse situations,  put yourself here as you read. I hope it will give you encouragement)


Acts 16, Paul and Silas found themselves in a unforgiving situation.  Because they casted out a demon in a servant girl, her master brought charges against them.  They were whipped and thrown into a cell.  Not just any cell but the inner cell with no windows therefore no fresh air and  they were chained. Ca you inagine the filth, the stench in the air and the pain from the chains?  Yet scripture tells us that about midnight they were sing praises, songs and praying when suddenly God brought on an earthquake.  Their chains fell off, their jail doors swing open and they have the perfect opportunity to escape yet they choose to stay saving the life of the guardsman who was about to kill himself.  Instead Paul and Silas told him about the love of God and that night this guardsman and family receieved Christ as Savior.
Now, there are a ton of lessons one can learn from this passage but since we are talking about praise, I want to focus on the fact that Paul and Silas were praising God, singing songs, and praying inspite of they horible situation.  What a great example of praising God when life is not exactly Mr. Wonderful.  Praise is an expression of gratitude to God for all the wonderful things he has done. Praise is expressing thankfulness. It's, also, Showing Him how much he means to me.  Praise can be a song, a dance, hand motions, words of exaltation. Praise can be a quite smile given to Him or music from a quitar, piano, drums or the beat of spoons.


Praise is a choice; it's not a command. God doesn't need my praise to make him feel more Godly. (He can't be anymore God than he already is) but rather praise is for me to remember who God is. Praise is a reminder that in difficult situations, God is still in control. We have to remember all the good that is around us. (Look around and see the good.)


More about Laura and her "Friend." The very night her friend broke off relations, Amy, her brother's girlfriend, called to invited Laura to see a movie with her. Her treat. Laura loves Amy and Amy had no idea of 'broken friendship' situation.  Laura was glad to think about other things.  Another time when "Friend" was causing trouble, God showed up again.  This time, her brother, invited her to go with him to Sweet Frog , a favorite yogurt shop. "YES"  God did this 2 other times for Laura, until she could stand on her own.  She is still singing his praises for the comfort He brought her during those trying days.

Have Hope

Dear Friend,

Wow, life is tough sometimes, isn't it.  One minute everything is peachy with the wind at your back and the next minute you feel like the rug has been pulled out from under you. Do you ever feel like just throwing your hand up in the air and say, " Forget it, why try so hard?",  Sometimes, I'll go get into my SUV and just scream.  I feel better and more level head to face the challenge. But I have hope. Hope that the sun will rise tomorrow. Hope that things will get better.  Hope that I am not be the same person I was 10 years ago. I've several speakers say the phrase, " I'm not where I want to be but thank God I'm not where I used to be.  I surely don't measure up to God's standards but every morning I wake up, and I look outside at the beauty of the would, and thank him that his mercy is made new in my life  again.  I've put both feet on this side of the fence to follow him.  Yeh, sure, living with Christ will be scary, even frustrating at  sometimes. I don't know where he is taking me but I have to trust him. Lord knows, I don't dare trust myself anymore.  I can't count the many times I've made bad decisions and wrong choices only to end up flat on my face.   He's the only one who knows my path that I am to follow. AND because he's a good, no, a great God, I can trust that his  plans for me  will give me a future and hope. If I find myself on my face again, it'll be to give him all the praise and worship I know how to give him.

" 'For I know the plans I have for you,' says the Lord. 'They are plans for good and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.' "  Jeremiah 29:11

A Time to Reflect-

 I drove by a church one afternoon with a display of a rock and in front stood 3 'Roman Soldiers'.  They were young-looking gentlemen that must have been there for a while for they were laughing and clowning around. (Did I mention it was cold and rainy.)  The first thing that came to mind as I drove by, was "Oh, I need to come back Sunday morning to see what happens."

Yesterday was Good Friday.  The day we remember in our Christian faith, that Jesus, son of God and son of man, was crucified. Tomorrow will be the reason for our Christian faith, He rose from the grave conquering sin and death. Makes me feel a little choked up with praise for my Savior. But today, this day, the middle day, I wondered how Jesus' friends handled this day.  They had buried their friend the day before. Anyone who has buried a loved one will tell you, the day after feels numb.  You don't know what to feel. For the friends of Jesus, I think it might have been a time of reflecting, each with a favorite memory of their friend. For Mary Magdalene, perhaps she reflected the first time she meet Jesus.  The pharisees threw her at his feet.  Thinking she was going to be stoned and instead she was forgiven. For John, perhaps his reflection was of the day he saw Jesus transformed on the Mount of Transfiguration.  He couldn't believe his own eyes at the radiance of Jesus and seeing Moses and Abraham.  He was so awed stuck, overwhelmed with great emotion. (I think I would be too!) Perhaps John thought about the time just recently, when Jesus tried to tell him and the other disciples of the things that were going to happen, and they did take place. How he got in Jesus's face and told him he would not let it happen. And how Jesus, got upset with him and told him that these thing HAD to take place.  Perhaps John was thinking, "Now what, Jesus?"  For Peter, he was thinking about the time he saw Jesus walk on water.  He remembered how amazed he was at seeing him and how he wanted to do that. He remembered he tried to walk on water, too and almost drowned.  And how Jesus had to pull him out and save him.  Maybe Peter was thinking about how he told Jesus he would never deny him, and then he did.  And what made  this memory worse was Jesus told Peter he would deny Him(Jesus).  He loved Jesus how could he have done such a thing.  For Mary, Jesus' mother,  a mother's broken heart for her son.  She must have reflected on the day Jesus was born. How he was born in that smelly, small manager. How she counted his perfect, little 10 fingers and toes. How she wrapped him in those blankets and Joseph took care of them.  She thought about how an angel of the Lord came to her just 9 months early, to tell her she was chosen to be the mother of the Savior of the world. Did she understand then what she understands now.  Nevertheless, a mother's loss and a broken heart. Perhaps she, also, reflected on His first miracle.  A friend's daughter's wedding, no more wine for the guest;  she just knew she was supposed to tell Jesus. What was it He said? "It's not my time, yet."?  Still, He took water and turned it into wine, the best!  Did Mary reflected  on all time when she was with him and listened to him talk as if the very words He spoke was from God himself. How she wishes she could have understood her son better,  but how could she understand the very son of God.

What are your reflections, today, about Jesus.  What are your favorite memories of him: a story, a pray, a dream,  a miracle.  Today, make it a time of reflecting on His love for you.  Happy Easter, my dear friend!

Adventures in an Old Barn - An Early Memory

I was young, maybe 5-6 when I first ventured to the barn. This old barn had definitely seen better days. The peeling red paint and boarded up windows made this place as mysterious as the creature in 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. The place called to me  "Come play, come climb, explore...."  Walking up I imagined the barn was guarded  by a fire-breathing dragon protecting its treasures inside.  l looked for a way in, then I spotted a place where the door and ground would meet but the ground had been worned away and created a slight dip in the earth.  It created a space just big enough for a slender little body to squeeze under.  I took the challenge. Taking a deep breath, I dove under the fire-breathing dragon and crawled under the double doors.

The space inside the barn was huge - at least two football fields side by side.  I stood in awe and wide-eyed trying to see everything at once. It was one massive playground. The ceiling seemed to reach heaven.  There were lofts and two huge doors where hay was once stored.  There were two windows in the loft area where sunlight was streaming and the rays showed the dust floating trough the air like miniature kites in a soft sea breeze.  There was an intense smell of stirred up dust  and  motor oil from the tractors. I could see the black thick goo under one of the tractors.

My eyes grew large and my heart pounded with the thought of getting caught.  Over in the far corner there were shelves of oil cans, a stuffed burlap bags, a rope, a large, metal hook, rakes, shovels, and  a ladder  and other stuff I didn't know. There were three big tractors and one small tractor in the barn and oddly a table with chairs around it. I went over to take a closer look and found cigaret butts. I sniffed one and choked on the terrible smell. I quickly put it back.

Suddenly, with a little help from my imagination, I climbed the nearest tractor but it wasn't  just a tractor . It was my get away car from The Evil Mother who grounds little children for not taking a bath.  A rope hanging from the center beam of the ceiling became my airplane crossing a river filled with hungry crocodiles and pirañas. When the engine of the plane began to sputter and stall,  I fought to land safely on the other side. Whew!  Something caught my eye and I  looked up to see a tiny bird had found its way into the barn. Suddenly, it's no longer a sweet little bird but a giant terradactile in search of food. It spots me and I run for cover under the table. I take the chairs to beat him off. He finally gives up and flies off in search of another little girl. I come out from under the table slowly  and  cautiously. As I point to the rafters , I shout, " GO eat some other little girl but you're not  having this one,not today!"

In the distance, I could hear the lone cry of the mother wolf calling me to dinner. With the Terridactile nowhere to be seen, I felt  safe to start my journey across the desert floor, the baring sun became too much.   Hot and thirst, I barely made it alive to the other side where a little(and I mean little) oasis of a town was. Holding a cup I found, I went to the bathroom pub to get fresh water.  As I approached the pub, I could hear cries of help. I turn to see my little brother being chased  by a man- eating lawn mower which had escaped from its chains.  But that rescue will have to wait for another day.  I heard a second call from the mother wolf and I knew I must hurry. I went to the escape doors fearing what I might see and there he was, just waiting for me.   How was I going to get passed that fire-breathing dragon that guarded the doors to my freedom and return to my homeland. No dragon would stand between me and my mother. I remembered my water bottle from the bathroom pub and quickly filled my container. I threw the water at the dragon and quickly dove under its wings. Safe!  I turned quickly toward the barn. With a sparkle in my eye, I knew I would return someday to save the prince from his demise. Then, with a skip and a hop, I ran down the lane where loving arms, a warm meal and a hot bath awaited me.

Lemonade and Jesus

You've heard the saying when life gets tough make lemonade?  Well, how do you make lemonade?  What if you don't even know the ingredients to make lemonade? No, there is more to this saying than is spoken.  Lemonade is refreshing and quenches the thirst for sure. Here are the three main ingredients: lemons, sugar, and water.  Mix together and stir, and drink. Simple as that.

Your spiritual life is like the making of a good thirst-quenching lemonade.  Your ingredients are God, the Father, Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit.  Now you're asking yourself "How are they like lemonade.?" or maybe you've already figured it out.  Lemonade needs each of those ingredients to  taste good.  One without the other just won't be lemonade and it defiantly won't quench your thirst. You will know that something is missing. The same is true with your spiritual life. You need all three triune to be complete. Each person of the Triune meets a need in your life. Without one your life is incomplete. You'll feel like you are missing something and can't quite put your figure on it. Today, Christ is putting his finger on it.

Do you need a Father figure in your life.  Are you looking for someone to fill that void in your life. You have searched and have choosen people who have not fulfilled that need.  God, your Father can.  He created the heavens and the earth. He created you and placed you in you mother's womb. He knew you before time itself.  AND He loves you. Yes, he really loves you. He will never tell you you're stupid, or hit you, or desert you. He knows what's best for you.  Why not ask him to show you what a true Father looks like and feel his warm of his loving arms.

Jesus Christ said " I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except by me."  Harsh right, not really.  God is holy, man, well, not so holy. Jesus is the bridge that can bring the two together.  You need a bridge to cross a river. In your spiritual life you need a bridge to cross the gap that sin caused separating you from God. So to make it simple, God asked his only son, Jesus, to sacrifice himself on a cross to become that bridge so you can meet your heavenly Father. How can you cross such a bridge?  The bible tells me that anyone who believes on the Lord Jesus Christ and speaks it with his mouth shall be saved. Simple as that.

The third part of this spiritual lemonade is the Holy Spirit. Bible, again, tells me that if we are going to worship God then we must  worship in spirit and in truth. You can't be fake about this. There is no getting around the fact that he is a parent who has eyes everywhere and knows everything before you do it. Christ gave us his spirit, his holy spirit, so we would know right from wrong and have a way to communicate with God, the Father. We receive the holy spirit when we accept Jesus as Savior; when we accept him as our bridge. The Holy Spirit is a person just as God, your Father and Jesus is a person. He will help you to communicate with God and Christ.

I could have gotten into all kinds of theology but that was not the purpose of this post. I just wanted people to know It's simple, not complicated as some people may want you to think: God is your Father, your parent, your guardian,your lover, your protector, your provider.    Jesus is your bridge so you can commune with God and have an example of how to live. And the Holy Spirit lives within you to  help you know right from wrong and help you communicate with God. Mix, stir and you will have peace.  Leave anyone out, and life won't be the same. It will be full of confusion, hardship, envy, malice, and the list goes on. 

Dear Friend, though we've not meet,  I just want you to be happy and at peace with your  surroundings.

Prayer series-Children

So yesterday, I started a series on praying for our children. This parenting job is tiring, and you can get beaten down if you don't have help.  But our Savior is here to the rescue.  We really do have a friend in Him, and He is willing to take on half of this parenting job.

In prayer we can bring him all our issues, not just children, and he will give us the answer.  This is simple christian prayer 101, but sometimes we need a reminder not to make it complicated.

1) Just because we've prayed once over a an issue doesn't mean we won't have to pray over it again.
If you child has a biting issue, are you going to discipline once and think that's the end. Maybe, if your child is an angel, but most likely she will bit again. So you discipline again.  Likewise, you pray again for you child to gain wisdom and understanding, and for you, pray for wisdom and strategy.
Another reason a parent needs to pray often on the same issue is children go through stages. You might have a problem with biting at two, you've prayed, gotten an answer suitable for a two year, and the problem seems to be solved, however at three not only is she biting but now she is kicking. You have to pray again.  What worked at two may not work at three.

 Every time "IT" (whatever "IT" is to you) raise it's ugly head, you pray. Praying will bring you peace in knowing God's power is at work on behalf of your child.
 
2) Another way to make praying complicated is trying to force our will onto our child in prayer.  We all want the best for our child.  We all want to see them succeed, especially in sports or academics or cheerleading.  Or wish them to be doctors, lawyer, big time accounts.  You know the kind of prayer I'm talking about.  "Lord, please allow Laura to get that big time promotion in NYC", (so I will have a place to stay when I visit NYC)   OR  "Lord, Please help Johnny make a 600 on all his SAT's" (so I can feel good about myself).  Thoughts in ( )'s are our unconscious thought whether we acknowledge it or not. But God might have different plans for them. Remember, He created them, He raised them up for His purpose not so we can have bragging rights. I must confess, I've been there, and I've done that and all it does is cause confusion, frustration and disappointment.

Our children need both parent's and God's guidance to make it in this crazy world. God's power will be working in our child's life as we pray.  It's never to late to get started. Whether your baby is 1 month or 30+ with wife and kids, you can make a difference through prayer.

inspiration -Day 3

I Raised You Up!


......."I raised you up for this very purpose, that I might display my power in you and that My name might be proclaimed in all the earth.  Romans 9:17


For a long time I thought God was comparing me to Pharaoh in this verse.  He gave me this verse after a life altering experience with him.  But Pharaoh was left to his own demise.  I, on the other hand, still had the choice to live my way or to live the way he had raised me.  I have purpose and so do you.  This is it:  so God can display his all wonder working power in you, for you,and around you (and me!).   And to proclaim his name to everyone. That thought excites me to no end that I might display God's power. 


Over the coarse of years, I have seen this power at work.  And I dare not close my eyes for fear of missing his power at work in someone else!   


He has raised YOU, dear friend, also for this very purpose, that he might display his power in you and the his name be proclaimed in all the earth. Where do you see God's power working in your life today?  To God be the Glory.

Prayer Series-Children

Parenting is the Best Job But Why Both to Pray!


*Note* My children are 21 and 15.  They are awesome kids, and while I would like to take most of the credit, I am giving all credit the God, my Father- the awesome parent that he is.  Years ago, He placed Stormie Omartain's books into my hands. And I have prayed each of those prayers over my children again and again as they enter different stages of their life.  It has been my desire to share with you these books and experience of raising Godly Children.  Thank you. 


Parenting is the best job.  It's also the hardest, the most joyous, the most exhausting and the most exasperating job you will ever have.  One minute you feel successful and so proud of your child and the next minute you want to strangle him. And just when you think you have mastered this parenting job, you discover you have a whole new set of rules.  With each new stage comes new rules and new challenges.  Whew! I'm tired just thinking about it.


But there is good news!  We don't have to throw our hands into the air and say "forget it, they will be what ever they will be." We don't have to let our children be left to chance.  We don't even have to be perfect! We don't have to pace the floor wondering where they are.  We don't have to dread the terrible two's or the tortuous teens. The secret.... not trying to do it all by yourself but turning to the Perfect Parent- God, the Father. We don't have to have all the answers all the time if we cover them in prayer to the Father.


I like the way Stormie Omartian put in her book, The Power of a Praying Parent, how we can partner with the Father. By giving our children to God on a daily bases, he will handle much of the burden and give them wisdom, power, protection and ability far beyond our own doing.  Our job is to love them, teach them, discipline them, nurture them and train them up to walk in the way they should go. We depend on God and He will see that our children are taken care of and blessed.

Inspiration
Day 2
                                           


Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.  Psalm 119:105

Have you ever had the electricity go out on you in the middle of the storm at night. Did you have to search for a candle or flashlight in the dark?  Were they easy to find?  Guesses are you had to make your way to their location very carefully, hoping you would not trip on anything.
Once you found them and you were able to turn them on, you had light to see where you were going.

God's word is compared to this situation.  Life can be like a dark room, not knowing where to go, afraid you will get hurt. Maybe you're already hurting.  God's word is a light, a trust source to show you your path. When was the last time you read a passage out of the Bible.  I want to encorage you do so know.

Find 2 verses that will encourage you to walk in the light of the path that God has for you. 

This is the Day!

Inspirational

Day 1

This is the Day!

This is the day the Lord has made,  Let us rejoice and be glad in it! Psalm  110:24

Every day is a gift from God.  He has given you another day to live. Rejoice in that.  He has given you another day to fulfill his plans for you; another day to sing his praises to family and friends. O, sister, you may be going hardships, but God has given you another day to make things right.  Have hope. He sees what is happening and he is greater than all that. 

Find 3 things to be joyful for, then thank him for those things.   

 Rejoice!