Saturday This and That

Today as I think about the busy week ahead, I know it will be the grace of God that gets me through. Going to Word Weaver's Volusia County Group on Monday will be a highlight as the members are my heart and soul. Then amidst a lot of family things I head off to the Florida Christian Writer's Conference for a day trip on Friday. I've heard they will be moving this conference to Georgia so I need to be amongst the group I've come to love, one last time. I'm looking forward to hugging Carol Kent in person, after praying for many, many years for her family and their son, Jason. I know all the speakers and classes will be excellent and I'm so grateful for Eva Marie Everson, Mark Hancock and the whole staff for their labor of love. 

The enemy has tried to slow me down a lot with some joint pain that makes walking uncomfortable and I guess it's true, getting old isn't for sissies. I'm asking the Lord for extreme favor and healing.

So pray for me and I'll pray for you. May we go out burning with the flame of the Holy Spirit.

It’s our most poignant and maybe important day to post and pray; I once saw a picture post that said “God bless the mother who has lost a child.” We pray blessings upon those mothers, and we pray on Saturdays for those who have lost loved ones to death. Many among us have lost loved ones, mates, children and young adult children. The most unnatural thing in the world they say is burying your child. Lord, send your strong father arms of comfort to those who are grieving. And I also say, there is more than one way to lose a child, and that is why we have so many hurting mothers, praying together on this group. 

Many of my widow friends are trying to find a new “normal.” Lord, we call out to You for them.

Some families are estranged and hurting and waiting for their miracle. They pray, they long for the “happy family” scenario that is portrayed in the media. They come to realize they are powerless and only the Lord’s power can truly show what is His perfect will. We fall down and we get up, sometimes we feel like we are smacked down and no one sees us. No one sees the heart of love, no one sees the tears, but no, the Lord has them bottled in precious urns in the heavens, not one falls that He does not notice. That’s the kind of God we serve, a savior kind, who will heal in His timing. 

He will be Your strong support today, if you will give it over to Him. Sometimes just taking the next step may be the hardest thing you can do and the bravest also. Then maybe as we walk towards His will for us (and sometimes that is not easy to understand or even know,) His Holy Spirit arrives and that wind will revive us. A prayer and a song is what I offer today: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3JXIEmVQi3Q

Thanksgiving and Complications

I think the word for today is complications; families are complicated, hurting, sad, broken yet our Lord is Lord over the complications! This we will believe in our darkest night of the soul, in the most complicated issues, in the wildest storm, You Jesus Christ our God and Father are Lord over the complications. You know the beginning from the end, the Alpha and Omega, the beautiful pattern of tapestry. Why would we think we can go through life pain-free when you suffered ultimately? Though it doesn't make us feel good to go through things, we know we have fellowship with Your suffering. We will believe the report of the Lord today that this is the day that He has made and in that we can find some small thing to rejoice in. Everyone reading this has the gift of life, everyone reading this is able to find someone to bless in some small way, if not a large way, everyone reading this can be thankful for something today. If we have lost family members thank the Lord for those we have left, if we are in pain in one part of our body, thank the Lord for the parts that don't hurt, if we don't have an abundance of provision thank the Lord for what we do have. It is a "give thanks" day and we don't have to wait until Thursday for Thanksgiving

Grace Builders and Me

Cecil Murphey wrote an article called, “Grace Builders” about the people who sometimes criticize us or rub us wrong. He gave several examples and each had been painful to his heart. Yet in the end he realized that those people were used by God to help him grow.

He talked about a 45 minute lecture he had received as a young pastor by some sisters that wanted to show him the error of his ways.


“As I walked out of the house, depression weighted me down. Their criticism hurt. I sat in my car for several minutes and prayed in deep anguish. By the end of the day, however, I had grasped one significant fact about those three sisters. They were God's grace builders in my life.”(Cecil Murphey)
Grace Builders is a beautiful name to call those who rub us raw sometimes in the name of Christian love and correction. Grace Builders! Do you have any? Maybe they belong to your family, maybe as Brother Cec mentions at the end, you yourself are one.
I have often thought how the scriptures talk about Paul and Barnabus and their parting over John Mark (Acts 15:39). I think about the apostles who would’ve just stayed together in the Upper Room instead of scattering to get the gospel out to more people, if they hadn’t had some Grace Builders around. I think about how we sometimes want to have a happy, close family but all that closeness and contentment may hinder the Lord’s true purpose of getting the word out of His grace to others who are dealing with family dysfunction. The word that His grace is sufficient for all things. Even dreams that don’t come true, at least not today. Never give up, though; Grace is coming through.