To The Least

<sup>Remember the least!!

It is Black Friday. Today Americans will consume more than all other countries in the world put together. I don't want to pull a guilt trip but I do want to tell you......there are people that need you to feed them, clothe them and house them. You have enough to help, consider what you could possibly give to another this holiday season.</sup>

^{Matthew 25: 42}For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, ⁴³I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.'

⁴⁴"They also will answer, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?'

⁴⁵"He will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.'

⁴⁶"Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life."

Thanksgiving

I will praise God's name in song and glorify him with thanksgiving. ~ Psalm 69:30

Let us come before him with thanksgiving and extol him with music and song. ~Psalm 95:2

Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name. ~ Psalm 100:4

Sing to the LORD with thanksgiving; make music to our God on the harp. ~ Psalm 147:7

Given

What has God given you to care for, be a steward of?

....the Xerxes who ruled over 127 provinces stretching from India to Cush (Esther 1:1)

I hope you don't mind as my letter is X this week and I will loosely use Xerxes as my example.

It has been on my heart lately to really see what it is that I have been given in this life. To stop praying for all the things I want and give thanks for all I have been given. You see, all of us have been given more than we deserve.

^{Romans 5:8} But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us

We have so much: family, marriage, children, homes, cars.......... and with each we are given the responsibility, yes responsibility, to care and love and sacrifice for each. We are given so much because He first loved us.

Heavenly Father~ Your precious sacrificial love that continues to pour into my simple being....thank you, for all you are and all you continue to be to me. Lord, focus me on your glory and beauty this week and as each of us search for the things we say we are thankful for during this holiday season, may we remember You and all you have given and continue to forgive as we are all so truly undeserving. ~In Your Precious Holy Name.

Thanksgiving, Day 3

Do you have enough?

How much is enough?

Is the sacrifice God made for you enough?

Do you have enough to be thankful for this week and always?

Romans 5 (msg)

18-19Here it is in a nutshell: Just as one
person did it wrong and got us in all this trouble with sin and death, another person did it right and got us out of it. But more than just getting us out of trouble, he got us into life! One man said no to God and put many people in the wrong; one man said yes to God and put many in the right.

20-21All that passing laws against sin did was produce more lawbreakers. But sin didn't, and doesn't, have a chance
in competition with the aggressive forgiveness we call grace. When it's sin versus grace, grace wins hands down. All sin can do is threaten us with death, and that's the end of it. Grace, because God is putting everything together again through the Messiah, invites us into life—a life that goes on and on and on, world without end.

When you loose focus this season; remember the best gift ever given is free and available for everyone to receive. Be thankful and let let Him be enough. Find rest in the chaos and know He Reigns.

Thanksgiving, Day 2

Thanksgiving

What are your talents? What do you have to give?

I know I am supposed to be writing about one of the top 3 things we are thankful for, but with only 6 responses to the poll (thank you for responding), I feel that we may need to touch on a broader subject, us.

I also wanted to steer away from writing about the same things we always hear at Thanksgiving, my guess is that several readers will not be reading this week anyway. For those of you who are, I felt you may need something different today.

Dear Lord,
You are awesome and amazing, your name is above all others. I look forward to the day that I am with you in heaven. Lord, I ask that you teach us your word each day. When we are hungry, feed us and when we thirst for more, quench our thirst. I am sorry for anything that I may have said or done that was not pleasing to you. If there is sin in my life, please reveal it to me. I forgive those that have sinned against me and ask that you restore them and work in their lives. Please stand in the way of the path of temptation and destruction. Help me to stay pure in thought. Reveal to me the talents you meant for your glory and help me to use them for good. Help me to have a generous heart even when I feel I have nothing to give to others. I am thankful for you and your provision. In your sons precious name, Amen.

Have you ever noticed that thankfulness is a heart issue? After writing the prayer above, I felt more thankful than I did before, more connected. I used the Lord's Prayer as an example to write that prayer. I think Jesus was giving us this example because it really dissolves anything that we may be holding onto that could get in the way of our thankfulness and hinder our praise. If we have unforgiveness or denial about our own sins, we will have a blockage in our heart that will hinder our ability to FULLY engage in Thankful praise. Now I am not a ritual type of person. In fact, I steer away from anything that starts to be a pattern because of my fear of becoming addicted to something. One thing that I know is true is that when I wake up each morning, the mornings that I start in praise and genuine thankfulness that I have another day of life, are the days that go more smoothly. The days I pray from the depths of my heart using the Lords prayer as my example, I feel more connected to God, available to be used for his glory and in a state of prayer and thanksgiving.

Go ahead and give it a try. The more you do it, the more you will see that it's hard to hold onto anything that would come between you and God. It will also make you more aware of the things you need to work on. If you ask God to reveal something to you, I believe he will.

Have a great day.

Luke 11:2
He said to them,
"When you pray, say:
" 'Father,hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come.
3Give us each day our daily bread.
4Forgive us our sins,
for we also forgive everyone who sins against us.
And lead us not into temptation.' "

Thanksgiving, Day 1

Thanksgiving, Day 1

A thankful heart

Thanksgiving week around my house this year will be different from any other. This is our first Thanksgiving at our house. In the past we have traveled to my husbands grandparents house for a short visit. Grandma Ada will be remembered but not present this year and Grandpa Dale moved to be closer to his family. We then go to my grandmothers house for the rest of the day, sometimes overnight. This year, she is in Tennessee, visiting Angela and her family. The same trip we took a year ago. This year we will open up our home to Dale's parents, my mom and sister and to a friend of mine, Donna and her daughter, Hannah. The dynamics have changed.

One thing stays the same, the age old question, "What are you thankful for this year". We used to write down what we were thankful for and put it in a shoebox and read all the responses from the previous years. That question usually doesn't cause any need for reflection, it's not hard to find things to be thankful for. This year things have changed. You don't have to look very hard to find people who are struggling. Even in our immediate family we are facing the unknown. Turn on the TV or the radio and you hear about the economy, politics and death. Friends and family members are being laid off or loosing their jobs, businesses are closing, loosing revenue. Vehicles are breaking down, marriages are breaking up, and there is still poverty among us. So what do we do, how do we find joy in the midst of all this? Is there really anything to be thankful for? I believe that we must seek God and be thankful for all the blessings we have in our lives. The fact that we had the money to invest in the first place, a home, a car, clothes, marriages, relationships, jobs. A few weeks ago our pastor said that if everything were how we wanted it to be then we would not be able to bear fruit. We would have never been given the opportunity to learn patience, gentleness, self control, generosity, peace, joy, the list goes on. All of the things that come from living through a storm. So, looking at our responses to the poll we took on what we are thankful for, it makes sense that we would vote Salvation, Grace, and family as the most important. Though our families may change in numbers, those who are in our family hold a place in our hearts and memories, either good or bad. But beyond that, we are all a family, those who believe in God. Because of who we are in Christ, there will be an overflow in our lives, there will always be something to be thankful for. I am sure we all have our own lists, but it is not surprising that we would find these three words among the lists. Grace alone brings us into thanksgiving. I encourage you to bring the overflow with you as you go this week, wherever it is that you will visit. It is with this spirit of thanksgiving that we will find this week more bearable, where we can see beyond our current situations and circumstances. What a blessing that is.

Don't forget to add one more person to your list of guests. God will be with you in the midst of all the chaos and differences you may find at your thanksgiving table this year. He will give you the grace you need to get through it all, who knows, maybe you will bear more fruit where you weren't before.

2 Corinthians 4:15
All this is for your benefit, so that the grace that is reaching more and more people may cause thanksgiving to overflow to the glory of God.
2 Corinthians 9:11
You will be made rich in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion, and through us your generosity will result in thanksgiving to God.

I call the above verse my 911 emergency plan. On every occasion, even those that are not my favorite, I can be generous, I can share the overflow of thanksgiving.

1 Timothy 4:4
For everything God created is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving,

Dear Lord, I invite you into my thoughts and my home this week. Through the activities and the gatherings, the relationships and the family time, I ask that you be here in the midst of our plans, of our gathering. That I will glorify you in all that I do and that you will feel welcome. Lord, I ask that you be with each of those who read this, that they will feel your presence. Lord, we give you praise in thanksgiving for all the blessings in our lives. You are amazing, Amen.

Contentment Day 4

Contentment Day 4

Helpful solutions to find contentment.

Resources used for this portion of the devotional:

God's Promises & Answers for Your Life

God is in the Small Stuff

And it all matters

Bruce and Stan

Checklist for Life

The ultimate Handbook

Don't acquire everything you want

Contentment with your situation breeds satisfaction

If you believe for a moment that you own even a single possession, your contentment will be tied to it.

The best time to relax is when you are too busy

If you can't get to sleep at night, check your pillow. If you can't sleep for two nights, check your mattress. If you can't sleep for three nights, check your conscience.

Since exhaustion begins and ends on the inside, that's where genuine rest must originate.

Learn to relax without feeling guilty.

Live somewhere between complacency and crisis.

Ask God for the ability to trust in His provision.

Write a thank you note to God for all the ways he has provided for your needs.

go to the Internet to learn about how you can help those who don't even have the basic needs of food, water and clothing. Read about missionaries and their efforts and how they trust God for provision. Ask God to show you where you can be a part of meeting the needs of others with your gifts.

go to http://www.worldvision.org/

Google Jim Elliot or Hudson Taylor

Reduce the number of worries you have by laying them at the feet of Jesus. Decide what boundaries you are going to set so that you do not allow the seed of worry to grow in your life. Quit feeding the seed, walk away from chaos and trouble.

Tomorrow is Praise and Prayer Fridays. If you have a testimony or found reason to praise or pray, please email womenofworship1@gmail.com or add a comment to this blog.

Dear Lord, I thank you for all that you have provided. That you are in the small stuff in our lives. Providing us with much more than we ever need. Help us to see what is most important in this life so that we can stay focused on you. I love you and pray that each of the readers will draw closer to you, even though this subject is hard. Help us to trust you and to put away all our worries and anxieties, for our trust in you is all we need right now, at this time.

Amen.

A Prayer for All Seasons

Since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you and asking God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all spiritual wisdom and understanding. And we pray this in order that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, and joyfully giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light.~Colossians 1:9-12

Time has a way of defining true friends. I have discovered that passing years and growing distance are ineffective obstacles to the mutual love between my friends and me. Perhaps it is because of our common walk with the Lord that we can just pick up where we left off whenever we are together. And these are the dear ones I will spend eternity loving!

Read today's Scripture passage again and think about what a wonderful prayer it is for you to pray for your friend(s). Knowing that a friend is praying for me is a real source of encouragement and support. If you aren't praying for your friends daily, let me suggest that Colossians 1:9-12 be your model. Look at what you'll be asking God:

*That your friend will have the spiritual wisdom and understanding she needs to know God's will
*That he/she will "walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, to please him, in all respects"
*That your friend will be bearing "fruit in all good work and increasing in the knowledge of God"
*That he/she will be "strengthened with all power...for the attaining of all steadfastness and patience".

You would then end your prayer by joyously giving thanks to God for all that He has given you--your friend being one of those gifts.

With these powerful words and the Lord at his/her side, your friend will be able to deal with the challenges he/she faces. I also encourage you to tell your friend that you are praying for him/her each day, and if they are receptive, tell her the specifics of your prayers.

Know, too, that these verses from Colossians are a good model for your prayers for your spouse, family members, neighbors and yourself. After all, all of God's people need to know His will, honor Him in everything they do, grow in the knowledge of the Lord, and be strong, steadfast, and patient as we serve Him.

Thoughts for Action
~In a journal, write down the names of the friends that you want to pray for each day. Under each name list specific areas which you want to pray for them.
~Read Colossians 1:9-12 for 30 straight days. Think specifically of the friends you listed in your journal.

Additional Scripture: Ephesians 3:14-19, Philemon 4-7

(devotional from 15 Minutes Alone with God by Emilie Barnes pg 11-13)