Pray for Our Nation

“Because he loves me,” says the LORD, “I will rescue him;
   I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name. 

He will call on me, and I will answer him;
   I will be with him in trouble,
   I will deliver him and honor him." Psalm 91:14-15

I was watching the news a few nights ago and I gasped when I heard about the disaster in Joplin Missouri. I saw the pictures of the homes that were destroyed and not only was everything destroyed but there was a great loss of life! There are deadly tornados that are currently sweeping across our land. As I google this morning, I see there are tornado alerts that have been posted for northern Vermont, Northern California and more in Missouri! Now is the time for all of us to get down on our knees in prayer and ask our Lord for the protection of our nation. May the Lord protect our land and our people! May the Lord also bring comfort, support and provide for everyone that has lost their homes, belongings and loved ones. We can only ask the Lord to bring His light into the darkness and to bring hope and love to those that have suffered these great losses in their lives. There is light and there is hope that Jesus can bring to all situations. Just as in Jeremiah 29:11 states. We may not understand the "why" but we do know in God's Word that He promises, "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future." God is our rock and our foundation in those times of need. Grab ahold of Him and His promises, like a life preserver in the rough seas of life. God will bring the peace that only He can give. Will you all join me right now, to pray a prayer of protection for our nation from any future natural disasters and to bring comfort and provision to those that have been affected by these disasters.

Question: Can you give a few minutes out of your day to join me in praying for our nation?

Storms

"God is our refuge and strength, always ready to help in times of trouble.  So we will not fear when earthquakes come and the mountains crumble into the sea.  Let the oceans roar and foam. Let the mountains tremble as the waters surge." Psalm 46:1-3

When I saw this image, I had to gasp! Look at the man that is standing at the door and the waves are crashing around him. I wanted to know more about this one picture so I had to google the topic. What I came up with was a series of pictures of this situation. What really happened? This man was waiting to be rescued and a helicopter was hovering above. The man had come out to check on the helicopter and a huge monster wave began to engulf him. What happened? Did he live or die? The series of photos from U-Tube showed that the wave closed in on him but on the very last frame, he closed the door and retreated to the safety inside the lighthuse. He was saved. I think about the storms in life that may come against us and it may seem impossible to ever survive. We have a God that says that all we have to do is knock on the door and the door will be opened. That is exactly what we need to do, and that is to run to the safety of the Lord and shut the door. May you find comfort in the Lord today, amidst the storms of life.

Question: Have you ever felt like this man on the lighthouse and the seas are closing in on you? If you are in this spot today, seek the Lord with all you heart and you will find the one that is our refuge and strength in times of need.

Reference:  "Oceans Fury Unleashed"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fapXUqagiFQ

Heavenly Perspective

  "LORD, you alone are my portion and my cup; 

   you make my lot secure. " Psalm 16:5

 In this chapter of Psalm, we get to the first verses and it is the prayer that highlights the basis of our faith.

" I say to the LORD, “You are my Lord; 

   apart from you I have no good thing.” Psalm 16:2 

Foundational to our faith is trusting in God for everything. I often pray with people in the Prayer & Healing Ministry because they have lost their focus. They seem to “drift” away from the one focus that is the most important in their life, their priority, the numero uno...that is God. If we don’t have God in our lives, what do we have? We really don’t have anything. Once we get back to that thinking, that He alone is enough, that He is all we need, then our Heavenly perspective begins to return. Then there is a mindset shift that happens and the "focus" returns. God then, becomes our “portion and cup”. That analogy is really good, for when you think of a cup, it can only be filled with a certain amount of fluid. He IS our cup, He is the one that fills us up with just the right amount of liquid (portion). That is so amazing, to think that God gives each and every one of us a cup and the exact amount to be filled. Should we compare cups? Should be be looking at how much others have? No, we are to focus on our own cups, the blessing of being filled with just what He wants us filled with and enjoy that blessing.His Word today was so inspirational to me. It helps me to reflect that the Lord is all I need and that He gives me exactly what I need – nothing more, nothing less. He is the one that gives my portion and for that, I celebrate.
Question: Are you in need of a shift in your focus today?

Refiner's Fire

And the words of the LORD are flawless, 

like silver purified in a crucible, 

like gold refined seven times. Psalm 12:6

As I read Psalm 12 this morning, I had time to reflect upon verse 6 and the “refining fire”. There are many scriptures that refer to this refining process in God’s Word. It is always about the hot fire that burns away impurities in our lives that seems to develop our character. It takes heat to burn away the impurities in our lives, which means that there will be pain, suffering and discomfort. In other words, there is a price to pay and we should expect the uncomfortable in this process. If we want to be more like Christ in our life journey, then we need to be willing to pay the price that is required.  When we want to be refined, we need to know that there will be fire and when we are going through that process, we must learn to endure. There are so many scriptures that support us enduring these times and one is to consider it "pure joy when we are going through the suffering". Do we enjoy the suffering, no way! But to get to the end result, to the pure silver that comes from the refining process, it is worth it in the end. The hardest part is to see that when we are suffering, we are in the refining process and when it is done, we have been perfected by the Father’s fire.  Some may endure the suffering better than others and others may get discouraged, feel defeated or want to give up. It is my opinion, that when we are in the period of refinement, we need to always keep our eyes on the final result of this process. What may help us get through these times is to know that God will NEVER give us anything that is too hard for us to bear. He will allow just enough fire, just enough pressure, just enough pain for us to go through in order to skim off the impurities. What is important, is to go through the examine process when the silver has cooled. When the refining process is over, we are to look back and see, “how did I endure?” or “how can I do it better when I am being refined”. This is a process that will help us analyze how we reacted to this process so that the little trips that the enemy tried to throw in there, can be avoided next time. I think about a situation that I just went through and I felt discouraged and I needed to cry it out. I cried, felt badly and began to feel the sadness creeping up on me. I realized that I needed to let it go, not dwell on it and begin to take my thoughts captive. I could not change the situation but I could control my reactions. So I choose to not sit in my pity party and get up and go out and get a bite to eat. I choose not to allow the enemy to steal my peace. For that, I learned a great lesson, when I am in the refining process and learning how to deal with disappointment in my life, I can choose how I respond and then the Lord is purging out all the impurities. These impurities were the emotions of discouragement that was invading my thoughts. I had to get out of it and distract my mind. Now, a day later, I look back and ask, “how could I have done that better?”. God had me go through this for a purpose and I needed to review how I did and know how I can do it better next time, when I am under the refining fire of God. I need to stand in truth through God’s Word as the water that quenches the fire! I am grateful for the analogy today of the refiner’s fire in Psalm 12 and how the Lord will use situations in my life to build my character and to get me to respond to life’s challenges better. I need to pick myself up and see how God has used the disappointments in life to build my character.

Question: Have you been under the refiner's fire lately? How did you do?