Prayer for Love and Light

Lord,

Sometimes I win, sometimes I lose.

Sometimes my faith is strong,

Other times it is not.

Sometimes I feel the warmth of Your love.

Other times I feel only cold from above.

You tell me You are always with me

And the warmth of Your love is always near.

But pain sometimes sows seeds of doubt,

I fear I might have lost Your goodness and grace.

I know You do not cause illness or tragedy,

I know You heal my brokenness from within,

And bring new blessings and hope.

In You I find forgiveness and strength.

Please pour out Your mercy

And shine Your love light down from above.

Amen.

 

 

Sing a Sweet Melody

Lord,

You put a song in my heart,

One I hold dear.

It's a sweet melody,

Full love, light, and good cheer.

I want to sing Your melody loud,

So they can hear of Your love

And know You are near.

I sing with joy because I am free.

You broke the chains that bound me

And helped me see.

In my heart I hear You say,

Reach out, My child, reach out.

Take your neighbor's hand

And shine your light for all to see,

This is the way,

This is how you become free.

I will sing of your love and justice; to you, Lord, I will sing praise.

(Psalm 101:1)

My Story, His Glory

 

Lord,

Might I have been given a different story,

An easier one, a quieter life,

One filled with more love and less pain?

But that wasn't my story, was it Lord,

You had a different plan for me.

You used my choices

And those of the people around me

To draw me closer to You.

My life had a different purpose,

One that taught me to walk with You.

I fell to my knees again and again,

Though I had trouble coping with my life,

I learned something important along the way.

I learned to look up.

I learned to lift my eyes

And seek You in all things,

My pain wasn't in vain.

My life taught me the most important thing,

I learned what it meant to be Your child.

I felt the amazing love that lives within Your heart.

I felt Your passion and devotion for me.

I learned that I had a true friend who was always with me.

I found my voice so I could share my story with the world

And give You all the glory.

I tell of the wonderful and miraculous things You have done for me

And purpose can be found in the hardest of times,

Because they drove me to pursue You.

You broke through the walls of anger and pain,

The hopelessness that I felt.

You reached down and held me close

And caught my every tear.

Day after day we walked together,

You gave me wisdom

And helped me understand.

You opened my eyes so I could truly see You.

I learned to praise You in the storms.

You let me taste a bit of heaven.

I've soared high into the clouds and seen Your beauty.

I have felt Your mercy and Your grace.

I have learned what it means to be Your child.

My story is part of Your story

And I want it to be for Your glory.

Thank You for making me part of Your story.

Thank You for loving me.

Thank You for walking next to me.

Amen.

 

 

 

 

Upside Down

 

When your world has been turned upside down,

Your skies are dark and the rain is crashing down,

Look Up!

Look above the dark clouds overhead.

Look higher than the storm.

Look to the One who sees you and loves you.

Reach up, take His hand.

He will lift you above the storm,

Above the chaos that surrounds you.

He offers peace, even in the storm.

Though it may be hard to fathom, it is true.

When you seek His Presence above all else,

Unfathomable peace will flow into you.

You won't just survive this storm,

You will grow and thrive.

Take a walk with Jesus.

Live next to Him and find true joy and peace.

And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:7 NIV)

Listen to the Sound

Listen to the sound.

God is in the birth of new life.

Hear Him in the innocent laughter of a child.

He is in every sunrise warming the earth

With rays of love shining throughout the world.

God is in the notes we sing,

And the love we share.

His voice can be heard in the dark,

When we lose our way and

Whispers to us, This is the way.

He cries with us when our tears flow.

His heart breaks with ours.

God is in the death of a loved one.

He takes our loved one home

To live forever in His Love and Light.

With Him, death is a new beginning

Of a new life in heaven's splendor.

Listen, the angels sing we arrive home.

 

 

 

Sent from Mail for Windows 10

 

Loved by God

 

There are so many different roads I could travel. So many ways I could go. I stand at the crossroads, unsure whether to turn left or right, go forward or turn around.

     While I stand and contemplate the choices, I sense something going on inside of me. My heart stirs. I think I need to listen to the voice in my soul.  I want to make the right choice. I don't want darkness. I don't want shades of gray. I want pure light, so I listen. Soon, I hear these seven words, this is the way, walk in it. I feel drawn toward a particular road. It seems brighter than all the rest. I feel calm. I feel at peace. The Lord takes my hand and says, let's walk this way.

     As we begin our journey, I realize life feels different. I feel different. Jesus is changing me on the inside. We came across a park bench and stopped to rest. I looked into His eyes and suddenly felt like I was diving into eternity. His eyes seemed to go on forever.  I saw infinite love, infinite possibilities, and a glorious life.

     This is the road that offers this deep connection with God. On this road, I am fully known and Jesus invites me to know Him fully. Mistakes, regrets, and sin no longer matter because forgiveness, grace, and mercy are offered here. The love on this road is so very strong. It is so pure, that it becomes light, and it radiates all around. I looked at Jesus, smiled, and took His hand. I am loved by God, one of His children. I am held in His arms. He gives me strength. He gives me shelter. He is my friend, my companion, my Savior.

Sailing the Seas of Life with God

          

Many years ago, my husband and I were sailing our boat in the Mediterranean Sea. We set off from Morocco and headed to Gibraltar.

We had three sails up, the main, the jib, and the mizzen. Morocco has a large mountainous area on its north shore. When we cleared the mountain, we were at the mouth of the Atlantic Ocean. There was a tremendous wind force coming off the ocean. We had far too much sail up to keep control the boat.

I steered the boat into wind so my husband could take down the large jib sail. The wind was so violent that it ripped the cleat off the boat. This cleat kept the corner of jib attached to the boat. The jib had a large metal ring held by the cleat. Now that it was loose, the sail whipped around and hit my husband in the head. With blood running down his face, he turned to hand me his glasses. He told me to run the boat in circles so he could untangle the sail and get it stowed below. Using the boat's engine, we went round and round over large waves. Needless to say, this made us both quite ill. My husband finally got the sail down. He trimmed the main sail, making it smaller, so we could maintain control of the boat using the engine. The engine died. The wind took over and blew us further into the Mediterranean.

My husband spent many hours working on the engine. At three thirty in the morning, the engine finally worked. Gibraltar was now out of reach, so we headed to the nearest country, which was Spain.

Were we praying on our boat, you bet! We wanted to be rescued. We wanted to be safe. Our prayers were answered. My husband and I survived the storm and the rocky boat.

In life, storms rage on, touching all of us. They shake us to our core. Trouble and evil find us. We often feel like we are out in the ocean, tossed around by terrifying waves. Our boat no longer feels secure. We fear the storms and the violet seas of life. Just like the disciples feared when they were in a boat in the midst of a storm. Our fears rise up when the ocean waves roar. We wonder if we will capsize and be swept out to sea.

The good news is that God lives at our core. He thrives at our core. He has the strength to defeat all enemies. He has the strength to bring us back to life. He is our shelter. He is our Creator and the origin of all love. He brings miracles where there is hopelessness. He is our life, our breath, our everything.

When we lift our eyes, above the waves, above the turbulence, we find the One who can save us. He reaches down and pulls from the deep. He asks, "You are trembling with fear. Why do you doubt? Where is your confidence? Do you still not believe that I AM Almighty God? If you take my hand and stay close to My side, you will learn how to walk on water, instead of drowning in your troubles. Do you believe? Will you trust Me? Will you put your life in My hands? Only in My arms, can you experience unfathomable peace. I am the Living water, and I am essential for abundant life. Please come walk with Me."