Jesus Christ Is Risen Today!

Jesus Christ Is Risen Today!

(Two Versions)

31 March 2013

Brevity Of Life

Lord, allow me to be mindful today of life's brevity and of Your willingness to establish the work of my hands for Your kingdom. (The Upper Room Disciplines - 2008, 20 October) 30 March 2013

Harping

I ask God to keep me from magnifying my troubles by harping on them continuously.
(One Day At A Time In Al-Anon, 15 March 2013)
29 March 2013

Discouragement

Help me not to be discouraged when I pray.

(Beth Moore, Praying God's Word Day By Day, 15 March)

28 March 2013

God Working

Lord, please give me the patience I need to do my work and leave the outcome to You. (Joshua Sundquist, Daily Guideposts - 2012, 25 January) 27 March 2013

Irrational Behavior

When I am tempted or pressured into irrational behavior, I pray that I may stop and think before I do or say anything whatever. I ask God to remove these impulses and help me to grow into the person I want to be. (One Day At A Time In Al-Anon, 2 January) 26 February 2013

Forgive And Forget

Do you need to ask anyone for forgiveness? If so, give it prayerful consideration. (after Harry & Emily Griffith, This Love We Share, 2 February) 25 March 2013

Daniel Prayed

(Daniel) knelt down on his knees three times that day, and prayed and gave thanks before his God, as was his custom since early days. (Daniel 6:10)

It isn't the length of time I spend in my quiet time, though I usually take an hour, but there is a carry-over of the activity of prayer, the attitude of prayer, that marks the rest of the day. (Stephen Olford)

(Quotes from Journey by David Jeremiah, 24 March) 24 March 2013)

The Prophets

Pay close attention to what ... [the prophets] wrote for their words are like a light shining in a dark place ... (The One Year Book Of Bible Readings, 14 January) 23 March 2013

God's Path

I strongly believe that once we set our feet on a path, we will be corrected and guided as long as our hearts stay focused on integrity - both ours and God's. (Laurie Beth Jones, The Path, p. 64-5) 22 March 2013

Prayer Pulls The Rope

Prayer pulls the rope down below and the great bell rings above in the ears of God. Some scarcely stir the bell, for they pray languidly; others give only an occasional jerk at the rope. But he who communicates with heaven is the man who grasps the rope boldly and pulls continuously with all his might.

(C.H. Spurgeon in Journey by David Jeremiah, 21 March)

21 March 2013

Belief

... without belief, dreams don't manifest into tangible reality. (Doreen Virtue, Ph.D., I'd Change My Life If I Had More Time, p. 21) 20 March 2013

Order Or Chaos

Everything should be done in a fitting and orderly way.

(I Corinthians 14:40, in Daily Guideposts - 2012, 3 January)

19 March 2013

Pray More, Worry Less

... if you want to worry less, pray more! Whenever you start to worry, stop and pray.
(The One Year Book Of Bible Readings, 23 February)
18 March 2013

Irish Blessing

May there always be work for your hands to do
May your purse always hold a coin or two; 
May the sun always shine on your windowpane; 
May a rainbow be certain to follow each rain; 
May the hand of a friend always be near you; 
May God fill your heart with gladness to cheer you.

Your Way or My Way

There's no reason why everyone should be a Christian in the same way and every reason to leave room for differences, but if all the competing factions of Christendom were to give as much of themselves to the high calling and holy hope that unites them as they do now to the relative inconsequentialities that divide them, the church would look more like the Kingdom of God for a change and less like an ungodly mess. (Frederick Buechner, Listening To Your Life, 15 March) 16 March 2013

This Way

Dear Father, show me where You want me to go today to encourage someone through my supportive presence. (Karen Barber in Daily Guideposts - 2012, 14 January)
15 March 2013

Life Is So Sweet

That it will never come again is what makes life so sweet.

(Emily Dickinson in Touchstones, 9 December)

14 March 2013

Wide Horizons

Older people who live spiritual lives ever widen their horizons, and ever expand their consciences. Older people who live only a daily routine become more and more stupid over the years. (The Talmud, in A Calendar Of Wisdom by Leo Tolstoy, 24 December) 13 March 2013

What's Prayer?

What's prayer?

• It's shooting shafts into the dark. What mark they strike, if any, who's to say?
• It's reaching for a hand you cannot touch.
• The silence is so fathomless that prayers like plummets vanish in the sea.
• You beg. 
• You whimper.
• You load God down with empty praise.
• You tell him sins that he already knows full well.
• You seek to change his changeless will.
• Yet Godric prays the way he breathes, for else his heart would wither in his breast.
• Prayer is the wind that fills his sail.
• Else waves would dash him on the rocks, or he would drift with witless tides.
• And sometimes, by God's grace, a prayer is heard.

(Godric's View of Prayer in Listening To Your Life by Frederick Buechner, 12 March)
12 March 2013

A Way Of Life

God of all creation, help me to discern and choose a way of life that sustains life rather than destroys it. (The Upper Room Disciplines - 2003, 15 September) 11 March 2013

Insight

I pray for insight into 

the realities of my requests and 

my expectations of others.

(after The Upper Room Disciplines - 2003, 14 October)

10 March 2013

Take Care Of Your Garden

(This is an illustration of the first weed whacker.)

Take care of your garden and keep out the weeds, fill it up with sunshine, kind words and kind deeds. (David Jeremiah, Journey, 30 January)
9 March 2013

Disaster

Some people don't know how badly they need a new way of life until disaster overtakes them. (One Day At A Time In Al-Anon, 21 November) 8 March 2013

Second Chances

Thank you, God, for so often granting the gift of second chances. (Beth Moore, Praying God's Word Day By Day, 16 February) 7 March 2013

Christian Witness

Make a plan for today to live your Christian witness in your deeds and not just your words. Meditate on how your life bears witness to the world ... (The Upper Room Disciplines - 2008, 17 October) 6 March 2013

Liberty

Lord God, help me to recognize and discern what is not beneficial for me. Help me to see that authentic liberty is being free to do certain things and free not to do others. (Beth Moore, Praying God's Word Day By Day, 8 February) 5 March 2013

Good vs. Evil

Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

Romans 12:21

(Harry & Emily Griffith, This Love We Share, 1 February)

4 March 2013

It's Always Something

God you have shown me that I don't have to do everything. I just have to be willing to do something. (Pam Kidd, Daily Guideposts - 2012, 1 February) 3 March 2013

New Life In Spring

Abundant life 

and 

new beginnings

Warm sunny days 

and 

cool rainy evenings

Spring brings a sense of refreshment and peace.

Take a moment each morning to pause outside your door

and

breathe deeply of the scent of fresh air

and

new life.

Listen for the chirping of birds,

and

revel in the gift of the season.

(Introduction to March in The One Year Book Of Bible Readings)

2 March 2013

Rock & Fortress

Since you are my rock and fortress, for the sake of your name lead and guide me.
(Psalm 31:3, Promises Of Joy, p. 30)
1 March 2013