Cumbria

Praying for the communities of Cumbria, and especially the families and the victims of yesterday's tragedy. Please join me in praying for healing and peace of heart today.

Some have asked. We are south of there and are physically unaffected. If you saw my pictures a few weeks ago of the weekend trip with the busted tyre--that is the area these events ended.

Prayer Request

I'm coming begging today for some prayer support for a friend. V was my first e-maginary (computer forum) friend who I had the courage to contact by phone. We have spoken on the phone dozens of times and the number of emails between us on our *ahem* favorite subject (I won't tell you what) probably number in the high hundreds. We've not yet found a way to meet since the UK and Canada are slightly separated by an ocean, but we continue to try. She is a soul-sister and the truest type of friend you can have.

Friday she was was taken to hospital with numbness. While at hospital she had a seizure. The doctors have found three tumours on her brain and a spot on her lung. It is cancer. They must determine which is the primary source before making decisions. Please pray for quick answers, for a treatment plan and for a full recovery.

My heart is breaking for V and her husband and 4 children. Please, please, please pray! I know that we serve a God that can break into this situation in a HUGE way. Praying for miracles.

Never Underestimate the Power of Parenting

alternate title: This will make you want to cry

A friend of a friend this week has run from her supremely abusive marriage, taking her five children under the age of eight and two garbage bags of belongings. That is all she got out with, but she is out. And she is determined to make a life for them all. The past couple of days she has been getting a place to live sorted so the kids have been staying with my friend. (on a side note, the amount of furniture and clothing and other essentials donated through word of mouth has been amazing, so she is actually setting up a home!) Today my friend had an appointment and could not take her two kids plus three of the five with her (the two little ones were with their mom for a doctor appointment), so she asked if I'd watch the three kids. I was happy to help.

My girls and these kids were playing a game. I was listening from the other room. Somehow the topic of being sick was being discussed. Here was the conversation:

Middle child (7): I got sick one night in bed. It was awful!
Flower: One night I spit up all over my bed, too. When I cried Mommy and Daddy came running to help.
Eldest child (8): Your Dad came to help?
Flower: yeah...
Eldest: Really? You're serious?
Flower: uh huh

She was incredulous that a Daddy would ever help! I was on the verge of tears for these poor kids who can't comprehend that. And, I breathed a prayer of thanksgiving that mommy and daddy being there to help them is something my kids can take for granted.

Don't ever doubt that the mundane parts of parenting matter. They do. Seriously.

Please keep this family in your prayers. They will be in their home tomorrow. They still need so much, but they are grateful to be together and be safe. Pray that they remain that way!

Lingering and Loving

I've been thinking a lot about family and friends this week. This post by Tami at The Next Step got me started. Situations differ, but the desire the same--to connect. I am blessed that my immediate family are all believers. But believing in and loving the same God, does not always equate easy to be together. Although we are not even a year apart in age, one would think that my brother and I were raised in different households. Our perceptions of home and family are that different. In many ways, when our parents divorced (almost twenty years ago) he adopted my mother's reality and I took on my Dad's. I'm sure the truth is somewhere in the middle. *grin* We are both opinionated (is that a surprise?) but he cannot see any way beside his own. In his reality, no one should ever leave Texas (I left 17 years ago), wives should always be at home (I worked for the first years of my marriage), church should be Pentecostal (I am Baptist through and through), etc etc etc. He never travels. He rarely steps out of his comfort zone. And, I'm happy for him. It works for him. It would drive me insane, but it works for him. I just wish that he could allow me the choices to live where I want, worship how I want, to travel and constantly push the boundaries of the comfort zone, and for him to understand that my choices work for me. So we find ourselves with a chasm--and not much to talk about when I go to visit. Since we moved overseas, and get home so infrequently, I have tried to view my life from his point of view, straining at times to find a connection. Tami's post left me with that wanting...wanting him to linger and wanting to find the right combination. But I don't see it. I thank God we share faith in common and that some day the other differences won't mean anything. But I wonder what we are missing now.

The second reason family is on my mind, is that my dear niece turned thirteen yesterday. Thirteen! How can my baby brother have a thirteen year old? (because obviously that means I'm old enough to have one as well!) She has already experienced more disappointments in life than many people see in a long lifetime, yet she is developing a lovely faith of her own. My biggest regret of living so far away is that I can't really be an influence in her life (and God knows she needs a female influence in a household of men). All I can do is pray, and be thankful that she has a church that loves her and teaches her. Happy Birthday sweetie!

As I was praying for my niece yesterday morning, then doing my blog reading, I found this post by Ann at the Holy Experience of Listening. God frequently drives me to my knees through Ann's words, and yesterday was no exception. I literally sobbed through much of the post. The question: "Who is the lost sheep in your life He is calling you to love?” stood out. My immediate family may not be lost sheep, but German's family are all lost sheep. I take for granted that I have eternity to be with my family, even if the here and now is somewhat silent. German does not have that assurance. And in reality, it is his brother that lingers and hovers and waits for a word of encouragement from us. He says he wants nothing to do with God, but is it true? Often I think what he really means is he wants nothing to do with the church. Are we living our lives where he sees that God and the church are not necessarily one in the same (another soap box for another day)? Do I really love my brother-in-law in a way that would draw him to Jesus? How can I show that with an ocean between us? So many questions, left at the throne of grace. But between Tami's and Ann's blessings of words this week, I'm more determined to love and to watch for lingering and to allow God to work.

Who lingers in your life? How do you need to reach out? Who is the lost sheep in your life He is calling you to love?

Blessings to each of you!


One other thing....if you are so inclined please pray for J&J, friends who left yesterday afternoon to live and work in Afghanistan with a Christian Service organization. They go as a family with their 2 year old daughter and their 4 week old daughter. And they go in such peace and faith as God leads. Pray for their safety and for their quick settling and adjusting to their new home. And please pray for their parents who have sent them with blessings and God's peace, but whose hearts must be heavy with concern and sadness. Bless you for praying!

IOW--The difficult path of prayer

"Praying is no easy matter. It demands a relationship in which you allow someone other than yourself to enter into the very center of your person, to see there what you would rather leave in darkness, and to touch there what you would rather leave untouched. Why would you really want to do that?"

~ Henri Nouwen ~

Why would you/I really want to do that?

I think as women we often find ourselves feeling misunderstood. Our kids don't understand that the things we ask them to do are for their own good. Our husbands don't understand how much work goes into keeping a home peaceful and running smoothly. Our bosses (if we have them) don't understand our divided loyalties between career and home. Our childless friends don't understand how we could prioritize a child over a night out. Our unmarried friends (if we are married) don't understand that our husbands must come first in planning our time and our married friends (if we are unmarried) don't understand how much we would love to have time with them (since we don't have a husband to go home to for intimacy or conversation). Much of our life is about feeling misunderstood.

(Please note, I said feeling misunderstood. Often the people around us do understand, we just don't give them credit).

So why do I risk a prayer relationship? Why would I do that hard work? Because I want to be understood. And God understands me more than any of the people in my life have a chance to understand me. He, alone, created me. He knows my inmost thoughts. He knows my dreams even before I know them. He knows me. And I want to be known.

So, I take my Bible and I carve out a bit of my day that is for Him alone. I fight for a few minutes without the demands of motherhood and being a wife, a friend, a teacher. I seek Him out. I sit. I open His word. And I ask Him to speak to me, because He knows the status of my heart. As He shows me the darkness I would rather not admit is there I have two choices--ignore it (only to have Him remind me another day) or give it to Him to refine. As He shows me the blessings in my life, I can rejoice. I can tell Him my dreams, because He placed those dreams in my heart. I can show Him the darkness because His light can eradicate it from my life. He already sees me, and He chooses to commune with me. I can trust in that. I can rest in that.

I choose the difficult path because He knows me.

He knows me and He loves me anyway.

So I choose Him.

O LORD, you have searched me
and you know me.
You know when I sit and when I rise;
you perceive my thoughts from afar.

You discern my going out and my lying down;
you are familiar with all my ways.

Before a word is on my tongue
you know it completely, O LORD.

You hem me in—behind and before;
you have laid your hand upon me.

Such knowledge is too wonderful for me,
too lofty for me to attain.
Psalm 139:1-6

"But if serving the LORD seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your forefathers served beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD." Joshua 24:15

"Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful." Colossians 4:2

Our hostess for In Other Words this week is Christine at Fruit in Season. Please join us there for others' interpretation or meditations on this quote.

IOW--Praying for Everything

I love to listen to my children pray. Flower is just learning to say 'amen' (often loudly as the preacher prays, good thing she is cute). Jewel is really learning the power of prayer. And, she prays for everything:
...she prays for the baby ducks to not be afraid in the wind
...she prays that her daddy will have 'good meetings' at work
...she prays for 'lovely day' at school
...she prays for Flower to 'not pee on the floor' (ok mommy prays this too but not aloud!)
...she prays that we can go for a walk or to the park
Whatever she thinks about is what she prays. And it makes her mommy smile. I smile even more when she sees God's hand and gives him credit. She thanks Him when we were able to walk, or the wind stops, or Flower has a good day. I do encourage her to pray (we have prayer as we start school and before bed and at meals), but I don't necessarily teach her what to say. The thing that amazes me is how much more she prays for now that she sees God answering prayers. What used to be a 'good day of school' one-liner now is a run on sentence of thanks and petition. The more she prays, the more she wants to pray.

"When there is little awareness of real need there is little real prayer."
~ Donald S. Whitney ~
Spiritual Disciplines For the Christian Life

I want to be more like that. I want to see God at work in the little things I've prayed. I believe that the more we see Him in the little things the more He reveals to us. It's true in my life. If I am breezing through life praying quick little surface prayers, He will often answer them but that is where the process ends. But if I am spending concentrated time in prayer He will bring to mind more and more things that I need to bring to Him in prayer. The more focused I am on praying the more aware I am of the needs around me. I become less self-focused and am therefore other-focused. If I am focusing on others I will notice if someone is not making eye contact, is downcast or anxious--needs to bring to the Father. If my eyes are turned upward and outward, I will see God at work in the greater world. And I want to be a part of what He is accomplishing. Often my part is prayer. How great a privilege! I don't want to take it for granted.

At that time Jesus said, "I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children. Yes, Father, for this was your good pleasure. Matthew 11:25-26

He called a little child and had him stand among them. And he said: "I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore, whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. Matthew 18:2-4

Father, help me approach you in prayer as a child. Help me delight in all that you do around me. Make me unashamed to ask for anything that you bring to my heart and mind. Draw me to Yourself in quiet times of prayer where you can reveal the needs around me. Make me sensitive to people to look past the surface and to see the needs. And give me courage to not only pray for peoples' needs but to be a minster of You in their lives. Broaden my perspective to see community and world needs. May I never lose sight of how much You love the whole world, and may that be a prayer burden on my heart. Thank you for teaching me through my children. Bless them today and grow them into women of prayer as well. In Jesus' precious and Holy name...Amen.

Our hostess this week is Laurel Wreath. Please follow the link to see what "others" are saying this week. You are sure to be blessed!

Prayer

I plan to be back later with a different type of post, but I've just been reading the news articles regarding Ruth Graham (wife of Billy Graham). It seems odd to be so touched by someone that I have never met. Yet she has always been an inspiration to me. She has supported her husband in ministry and in marriage. She has reared Godly children who in turn minister to others. She speaks her mind, but always with grace and charm. My heart goes out to her family today as she nears heaven's doors. Please join me in praying for them at this time.

Praying for Heather

If you are looking for In 'Other' Words, please scroll down. But please read this first!




Heather at Especially Heather is undergoing surgery for a brain tumor on Thursday at 8:00 a.m. CT. Kelli at Living in Grace is organizing a round-the-clock prayer chain for that day and the days following to cover Heather and her family in our prayers. If you have followed this story, you know that Heather and Mark are trusting God to show His glory in and through this difficult time. She is an inspiration, and I am honored to be a part of the prayer chain. If you pray, please remember Heather on Thursday--and everyday up until then. She will be in ICU for at least 24 hours, and remain in the hospital another 3-5 days depending on recovery. If God leads you to, please go to Kelli's site and sign the Mr. Linky that you will be praying and leave a comment there of when you will be praying. Let's cover our dear sister many times over every minute of that day and the following week. Bless you! (I'll be praying 7-8 a.m. BST which is 3-4 a.m. CT).

IOW--Breathing and Praying

I once kept an aroma diffuser in my office that had Eucalyptus oil in it. My co-workers hated it. Finally one day, I asked one what she didn't like about it. She told me it was because it forced her to breathe deeply, something she apparently didn't do very often. Conversely, that is why I loved it. I tended to hold my breath when talking about *delicate* issues like spending down of assets, living wills and dying (I was a social worker in a geriatric setting). The oil diffuser ensured that I did not hold my breath very long. I felt healthier and more awake--and I probably was because more oxygen was getting into my system. We take it for granted that breathing is a natural reflex. But even something as natural as breathing can be done shallowly and without total health effect.

Our prayer lives can be much the same. They need to be a natural reflex--something that we do naturally and constantly.

"Rejoice always; pray without ceasing;
in everything give thanks; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus."
Ephesians 5:16-18 (NAS)

I remember as a college student the first time I read Brother Lawrence's Practice the Presence. It changed my perspective. I began to realize for the first time that it was possible to "pray without ceasing." I put a little PTP reminder on my mirror that I would see often to remind me to practice. And with practice, for a while, prayer was like breathing--I'd pray without even really thinking about it. It infused my day and balanced me. I found myself more thankful, more alert to what God was doing, and more able to make decisions. Praying had brought life to my spiritual being just as breathing brings life to my physical being.

"To be a Christian without prayer is no more possible than to be alive without breathing"
~ Martin Luther ~

But just as I sometimes find that I am breathing shallowly and my physical being, although working, is not at it's optimum, the same is true of my prayer life. Sometimes, often times, my prayer life becomes shallow. It's there. And it is giving life to sustain. But it is not bringing life in abundance. I should not depend on a "non-ceasing", reflexive prayer life--I need to also have a deliberate prayer life. I need time that is totally devoted to prayer. Consciously choosing to pray is what brings the abundance.

"This kind can come forth by nothing, but by prayer and fasting." Mark 9:29

"Even now," declares the LORD, "return to me with all your heart,
with fasting and weeping and mourning."Joel 2:12

"If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land." 2 Chronicles 7:14

I was praying with a friend Sunday. She is having a very difficult time of attack. We spoke of how a few weeks ago, because of some of the ministry she with which she is involved, another friend suggested she "stay protected." My friend said she was almost flippant in believing she was protected. The ministry was covered with prayer, but those of us praying had not covered the minister as well. We prayed shallowly. We prayed for results. We prayed for a person's peace and salvation. We did not pray for spiritual protection. We did not acknowledge a real enemy. We didn't spend the deliberate, consistent pleading time in prayer because we didn't see the need. We are now--deliberately meeting in person and by phone daily in twos and threes to pray. We are in our prayer closets on our faces begging for deliverance. I'm asking God to forgive me for holding my prayer breath and praying shallowly. With the deep prayers will come, and is coming, the cleansing.

Praying "without ceasing" comes from training our hearts and our minds to see God and thank God in everything. Praying "with fasting" comes with a deliberate decision that right now I am choosing to pray. We need both. Both bring life. Every moment sustaining breath life and deep cleansing abundant life. I want it all--and by God's grace we can have both.

"And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints." Ephesians 6:18 (emphasis mine)


Take a deep breath and feel the physical cleansing. I hope you have a time of cleansing prayer time today as well. God Bless You.

Iris is our hostess today for In Others' Words. Join us at Sting My Heart to read others' interpretation and reflections on Luther's quote.

Prayer Request

When you have friends and family serving our country in the military in times like these, there are certain phone calls you hope to never receive. My friend S received one of those calls yesterday. Her brother-in-law was killed in a helicopter accident this weekend. Please pray for S, her sister H and her nephew as they cope with this news. H was a newly-wed, had found the love of her life who loved her son as well. I cannot imagine what they are dealing with, so I don't know how to ask for prayer except for peace and comfort.

Also, please remember to pray for all of our brave men and women who are sacrificing time with their families to protect ours. Pray they will be safe and come home soon.

Thank you!