inspirations

Be Gentle.

Let your gentleness be evident to all. Philippians 4:5

When we encounter rudeness or hostile behavior, our natural reaction is to lash out tor retaliate. However, gentleness is a fruit of the Spirit and must be made evident to all. Next time someone cuts you off in the traffic or skips ahead of you in line, gently give way and show your children a Godly reaction. They're watching.

"O Lord, let my children's gentleness be evident to all and thereby bring glory to you. Amen."

 

from Prayers/Yaeger

Call on Him.

Anyone who calls on the Lord will be saved. Romans 10:13

New mothers hear and respond to every sound their child makes. Similarly, God is ready to answer you when you call out to Him. God responds with His gift of salvation to everyone who genuinely calls on His name and desires to make Him first in life.

"Lord, arouse in my children to call upon Your name and be saved. Amen."

A Reminder...

During this 30-days-of-prayer posting, I just want to link you to a post I wrote quite awhile back that I stumbled across myself tonight...and I re-read it. It struck a cord with me tonight again, much like the day I wrote it. Tonight I was reminded (not by my own writing or my own post, no, by GOD who inspired me in the first place) that God WANTS us to Pray BOLDLY. I thought this was a good time to interject a "link from the past" during this 30-days of praying for our children and families...

Praying Boldly

Blessings to you today!

With prayers,

Teri

Love your enemies.

Listen, all of you. Love your enemies. Do good to those who hate you. Luke 6:27

It's easy to love people who are lovable...but you can't love your enemies without God's help. Implore God for a heart like His and receive from Him the love He has for ALL people. The love God gives to you will be a powerful testimony of God's goodness to those who hate you (or, putting it another way, those that you don't get along with).

"Loving God, give my children a heart like Yours that they may love their enemies and do good to those who hate them or those that are mean to them, thereby glorifying Your name. Amen."

Not Proud.

So do not become proud, but stand in awe. Romans 11:20

We cannot boast or take any credit for God's gift of salvation. We are all unworthy, and yet we have received forgiveness of all our sins. Let us stand in awe of God's grace.

"Lord, protect my children from pride for all they have and do. May they stand in awe of You, Lord, and give You the glory for their rich blessings. Amen."

Stay Strong.

Do you ever notice how, whenever you draw closer to God, the more Satan attacks you from everywhere and everyone around you?

Seems Satan doesn't like it when we devote ourselves wholeheartedly to the Lord. Oh sure...he's always busy trying to trip us up. But the Christian that's going through the motions is a safe-bet to him. On the other hand, a Christian who commits to drawing NEARER to God and really, REALLY, ask to "know Him more intimately than ever before", and decides to TRULY DEDICATE themselves to God? Watch out.

I'm finding it's a true test of your character; a true test of your heart. God says "seek me, and you will find me, when you search for me with all of your heart..." Jeremiah

He doesn't say "search for me a few minutes a day". He doesn't say "fit me into your schedule". He doesn't say "in between the things your wrapped up in most of the rest of the day".

He says "ALL OF YOUR HEART".

So...when you decide to do that, to REALLY do that, it takes change. It's not easy and it's painful. Change is challenging. Because ALL of your heart? ALL OF IT? What exactly does that MEAN?

It means...

MAKE ME MATTER MORE THAN ANYONE OR ANYTHING IN YOUR LIFE. PURSUE ME. AT ALL COSTS.

And then?

YOU'LL FIND ME.

So in attempt to do exactly that, Satan takes notice. And spends extra time disrupting your life and creating more chaos than you ever had before all in an attempt to discourage you and sway you off course and back to the safety of just "fitting the Lord into your schedule for devotional time in the morning and night-night prayers at night."

Discouragement by and through others. Doubt. Hopelessness. Trials and Tribulations from everyone and everything. 

But I choose to trust the Lord. I choose to be shielded by His power.

"Who through faith we are shielded by God's power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time". 1 Peter 1:5

And I choose to continue to pursue understanding and experiencing what Paul meant when he said we can still have "joy" even in the midst of pain and suffering and chaos.

"And not only that, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance; and perseverance, character, and character, hope. Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us." Romans 5:3-5

When rain clouds threaten, we seek shelter. We are not shielded from the storm until we go through the door. Similarly, faith is the door, and when we go through that faith-door we are going to Jesus and into the loving and safe power of God's hands.

"All-Powerful Lord, shield me and my family from Satan's attacks; encircle us with Your strength and power. Draw each of us nearer to you; strip us of our selfish nature and cause us to hunger for yours. Amen".

Rejoice.

 Rejoice in the Lord always, again I will say, rejoice. Philippians 3:4

Sometimes our everyday worries consume our lives. We lose sight of the big picture---that God has forgiven all of our sins and He is on our side. We forget that our REAL purpose is to serve Him in winning souls for heaven. Take a moment to tell God what is on your mind and rejoice in the Lord for His eternal blessings.

"Lord, inspire my children to come to you in prayer and to rejoice. Amen."
 
   

 

Do Good.

May you always be doing those good, kind things that show that you are a child of God, for this will bring much praise and glory to the Lord. Philippians 1:11

You cannot do good deeds to make God love you more. God cannot love you any more than He already does because He loves you fully and completely now. Your good deeds, however are in thankful response to His grace, showing that you are a child of God desiring to bring Him glory.

"Holy Father, help my children to do those good, kind things that show they are Your children and thereby bring praise and glory to You. Amen."

from Yeager/Prayers

 

Salt.

You are the salt of the earth. Matthew 5:13

You are God's salt, His seasoning and preservative. Flavor the world with the message of salvation through Jesus Christ. Preserve God's goodness in the world by the way you live your life.

"Jesus make my children the salt of the earth by telling others about the Gospel message, and keep my children close to you so they do not lose their saltiness. Amen."

 

Test Everything.

Test everything. Hold on to the good. 1 Thessalonians 5:21

Children are bombarded with different ideas and world philosophies. Train them to test every idea against what the Bible says. Teach them to hold onto biblical principles and discard the rest.

"Jesus, direct my children to know Your Word so they may test everything and hold on to the good. Amen."