What a powerful message in prayer this morning! I am worthy!!!!

 Good morning and happy Monday, I pray this morn finds you in a happy place, that your sleep last eve was peace filled and that the spiritual gas you filled up with yesterday will keep your vehicle on the straight and narrow the entire week long!
     In prayer this morning I was sitting out, wrapped in my favorite "betty blankie" enjoying all of God's beauty and grace, the birds were singing a delightful song and the sky a most beautiful shade of blue, there is a slight breeze and the sun shining on my face warmed my heart! I prayed my usual morning prayers for the ones suffering illness and rehabilitation, for those struggling financially, for those feeling lost and alone, for those suffering the loss of a loved one, for those having a difficult time putting one foot in front of the other. I prayed for those who have been asking for a miracle, for those who have just had babies, for those desiring to be parents who are having difficulty with fertility, for those who rise each day with sadness in their hearts, for those who are blinded by the negative and refuse to see the positive. I prayed for all that have special prayer request, for your children, for your families and for you. As I was closing my prayer I asked God to give me a message this day, if he would direct me in the path of someone in need of a friend, in need of a shoulder to lean on, in need of compassion and love or in need of feeling the holy spirit through prayer. As I was beginning to close my prayer a feeling of unrest came over me and I knew it was directed at me...I knew he needed me to examine my storm and allow him to be my lighthouse. I tend to push things to the back burner...not God...just things, when something is bothering me I tend to pray for everyone but myself. I have gotten much better in asking for specific prayer for me, but I still struggle with myself asking special favor for me, when I felt him nudging me this morning it was as if he were saying..."hello!!! you forgot to pray for yourself!!!" I sat there for a moment and thought about my needs and my hearts desires...am I really worthy of asking him for special favors? Am I really worthy of asking for blessings for ME? I asked him if it were right for me to ask for special blessings specific for me and I felt this wonderful warmth come over me, it is like the warmth I feel when I pray for others and I know he is answering the prayer, when I pray for peace, calm, and comfort for another individual and he is blessing them I feel this incredible calm come over me and I know that the person I pray for is in a good place and that the blessings are beginning in their lives! I felt this amazing, soul comforting calm and I began to cry! It was for ME. Thank you Father for always giving me confirmation as to what I should and should not do, thank  you for blessing me with the power of discernment, thank you for allowing my spirit to feel you, my soul to embrace you and my knowledge to know that Jesus Christ , the holy ghost and you are with me every step of the way in my journey...I pray this day if you are still on the fence....let go and begin to walk forward, cross the pasture and trust that God will not allow you to fall into the sticker patches, you have to let go of the fence my friends in order to begin your true "faith" journey! God's love is the best, let him love you today!!!
     I wish for you a wonderful day, a day that is filled with truth's about yourself and knowledge that it is what GOD wants you to do, aside from God who is the most important person in your life??? YOU ARE, hello, if you don't take care of you...how can you take care of others...what a wonderful realization this was for me this morning!!!! Praise God today in all that you do, praise God today for all you have, praise God today for his great sacrifice, but moreover praise God today for his unconditional love!
I came across this and love it, see proof that we should pray for ourselves!!!

5 finger prayer

1. Your thumb is nearest to you.
So begin your prayers by praying for those closest to you.
They are the easiest to remember.
TO PRAY FOR OUR LOVED ONES AS A "SWEET DUTY"
2. The next finger is the pointing finger.
Pray for those who teach, instruct and heal.
This includes teachers, doctors, and ministers.
They need support and wisdom in pointing others in the right direction.
KEEP THEM IN YOUR PRAYERS.
3.The next finger is the tallest finger, which reminds our leaders.
Pray for the national leaders, leaders in business and industry, and administrators.
These people shape our nation and guide public opinion.
THEY NEED GOD'S GUIDANCE.
4. The fourth finger is our ring finger.
Surprising to many is fact that this is our weakest finger;
as any piano teacher will testify.
It should remind us to pray for those who are weak, in trouble or in pain.
THEY NEED YOUR PRAYERS DAY AND NIGHT.
5. And lastly comes our little finger; the smallest finger of all.
Which is where we should place ourselves in relation to God and others.
As the Bible says, "The least shall be the greatest among you"
Your pinkie should remind you to pray for yourself.
By the time you have prayed for the other four groups,
your own needs will be put into proper perspective.
YOU'LL BE ABLE TO PRAY FOR YOURSELF MORE EFFECTIVELY.
Source: Paul Ciniraj, Kerala, India

~~"I AM WORTHY"~~

     Good morning and happy, happy, Friday!  It is hard to believe it is already toward the end of June and still so chilly out in the morning, 44 degrees, the sky is a bit gray but with chance of clearing and delighting my heart with the blue of the blues:) The birds, as like everyday, are singing a happy tune, there is a bit of a breeze and the world is just beginning to wake up:) Oh the beauty he provides us!!!! AMAZING:)
      This morning in prayer, I was filled with such a presence of the holy spirit, it was as if he were sitting beside me, I sat there with goosebumps on my arms and legs, I was inside so no...it was not the 44 degrees:) The deeper into meditation, the stronger the spirit became, at one point I felt tears streaming down my face and my heart was dancing with excitement! I tried to think of exactly what I was praying at the moment that I felt him but was so filled with emotion that I could not remember. It was very difficult to finish my prayer, to even sit still with the power of him around me. I calmed my mind and proceeded with prayer, I began again asking mercies and strength for myself and boom the goosebumps got bigger and my heart fluttered more, at first I thought...maybe he is irritated because I am praying for "me" but then I know that the holy spirit will not stay in unholy situations...so I proceeded... heart pounding, goose bumps, chills, almost giddiness...when I finished my prayer and sat in the quiet, I realized that the message I need to leave today is "SELF" how can we be healthy of mind, how can we pray for others if we do not ask mercies for ourselves. How can we be examples of Christ if we do not pray for us? I thought about it and wondered...am I worthy to seek God for me? Am I worthy to ask him to feed me for strength, to cover me with his healing hands, to calm the fears in my heart, to wash me clean from the sin that I encounter on a daily basis, to forgive my unclean thoughts???? I was so validated by once again feeling the strong presence of the Holy Spirit! I now get it....if I do not take care of "me" I will not be able to continue in my journey of spreading God's message. Thank you Lord for blessing me with another truth, for opening my eyes so that I might see what I am in need of in my life, for allowing me to feel, to hear, to see. God is amazing, I am so thankful that he is in my life. 
     May this day, you really...really....really....ask blessings and mercies for yourself, may you not be like me and think to pray for everyone else but neglect yourself? May you feel the presence of the holy spirit in validation that  your choices are pleasing to our father in heaven. May you feel God's love and share with others! Love in Christ to all:) amen.

Prayer time, can I add you to the circle?

This day is swiftly coming to an end and I give thanks once again to God for allowing me to be a part of it! Each day I learn new things, many of which are within me, each day I am faced with situations that I have to decide how I will handle them and each evening when I lay my head down to pray I analyze my actions and always find that I am doing better but still have things to learn. In prayer this evening I would ask you to join me again for those specific ones I have asked mercies for this week, I ask that you add the family who lost their loved one due to the stings of bees, he was taken off of life support this morning, his family needs all of us to offer up pleas for comfort and peace, I continue to ask you to pray for the military, and to do this daily until each and every one of our soldiers are home, continue with me if you will to lift the people who were affected by the storms, may they each day get a little bit stronger, regain their faith and always feel the love that has been wrapped around them. Please continue to pray that the truth come for the little girl taken so angrily at the hands of evil. There is so much for us to pray for, so many in need and I know if we continue to fall "on bended knees" miracles will continue to happen in our lives and the lives of others. 
I have been in thought of the sacrifice that our Father in heaven made for us, I think about the love I have for my child, how the mere thought of her hurting, makes my heart wither and feel as if it will stop beating, when he allowed his son to die on the cross I cannot even begin to feel his pain, how did he ever stop weeping, how could he be so giving, how could he love us so much that he would be willing to give his son in our names? When people say things like "God is mad at me" God has given up on me" or take his name in vane I am astonished, I am overwhelmed that the gift of his son is so easily forgotten.  Tonight I am going to end my day with thoughts of the sacrifice, and sleep peacefully with the knowledge that I am loved, and that I am worthy. May you have that same kind of sleep, may you dream of beautiful times in your life, may his robes be your blanket and his chest be your pillow, cozy up in him and allow him to heal any ills that you may have! God bless each of you  in Jesus' name, amen.

My eye is on the prize:)

 

   

  Monday, Monday....oh the aches and pains, the weary minds, the curse of the dreaded Monday....question??? If we did not have Monday, how would we get to our desired destination...the weekend???? There is a "vehicle" to every destination, there is a road that leads to every ending place, there are hurdles, some really high hurdles,we must jump to get were we want to be, brick walls, mountains, pot holes, but we must keep our eyes on the prize, are we willing to face the woes of the journey to "make it"???
     There is a prize at the end of all things we face in life, even death is a prize. When God sends our spirit here to gain an earthly body, he does it with the knowledge that this perfect, unscarred, whole, Christian, spirit will face adversity in every turn once they are delivered. He has written our book of life, is satisfied that our spirit is ready to make the earthly journey and hopeful that our spirit will be strong enough to battle the evil doings of satan. Some might say that he "sets us up for failure" as evil walks the earth, is around every corner, is lurking just one step away waiting for us to join his hands. God has to see how we will honor him, he has to know that we are strong enough to cling to his word and his promises. He has to see if we are weak, one of my favorite expressions is " God don't want junk" He has to know that the lessons we learned in the spirit world were strong enough to carry us through the evil world. He has made it pretty easy to get through the high tides, the slippery mountains, the solid brick walls, the waist high hurdles... he has provided us a way to have "do overs" and "second chances"....through his sacrifice of our brother, Jesus Christ. He has made it virtually impossible to fail, yet we continue to, we time and again choose to venture down the wrong path. I have traveled some dark, mold infested, thorn ridden, smelly paths...I have been there...done that, drinking, drugs, sex, lies, attempted suicide, given completely up, don't give a dang about anything. You name it and I have done it, am I ashamed??? YES, am I continuing to wallow in the pits of hell???NO. In the last and final hours of what I thought were my destiny, I fell on my knees and gave it all over to God, I raised my hands to the Lord and completely gave it all to him. It took many years for me to "get it" and still I fall short and have to fall on my knees each day, I continue to think some days that it would just be easier to follow satan, his way looks simple, his way looks pain free, his way looks "fun" his way is very enticing...God's way seems very difficult at times, his way means, "cramming for the test to make the grade" his way means laboring with intense pain to win the prize, his way means living in a way that is chastised by many, with name calling, with stone throwing, with having to pick ourselves up and keep moving forward. I made a decision years ago to face the evils in my life and to cast them out, I made the decision that no matter how difficult my trials are here, that I would stand firm and follow the righteous one. When I look at what is offered in the end, it really does not seem that unfair, when I look at having ever lasting life, at living with the ones I love forever in paradise, at never feeling pain again, at only crying tears of joy, at listening to celestial music, at walking beside Jesus Christ and sitting in the presence of our Father in Heaven, the resistance does not seem that big a feat! Not one of us here on earth is perfect, we will fall short many times during the day, but he has covered us on that one, if we come to and ask forgiveness through Jesus Christ it is promised! I pray today if you are feeling lost, if you are thinking it is too difficult, if you are playing with the idea that the evil way is the easier, if you are down and out, if you seem to be getting hit from all sides and feel hopeless, that you will accept our Father in heaven into your life, that you will join me in prayer and allow him to "take the wheel" that you will consider all that you have done to this point as mere lessons of life and that you will turn your head toward the "son" and allow him to warm your heart, to heal your spirt, to cleanse your soul and fill you with the knowledge that the way may seem long, that you may become weary, that you may stumble but with him you will never fall. He loves us so very much, and as I do each morning, I am extending my hand out to him as a child does its father in the knowledge that he will hold on to it tightly so that I do not become lost in the shuffle:) Love in Christ, don't ever give up. Keep your eye on the prize and look forward to paradise:) 

Is your "tank" full?

~~~OH HAPPY DAY~~~Good morning and happy Sunday, I am beginning to think that our  chilly mornings are gone, I am sitting out in shorts and short sleeved shirt as  6 a.m. and it is already 56 degrees, the sky is a bit cloudy, we are expecting showers at some point today but 73 and showers not 40 and showers:) 
     As I have said in other blogs, church, religion, prayer,  and God were not really a staple in our household when I was a child, it was not that we did not believe, it just did not hold a place at the dinner table. When I got married I went to church, (hit and miss) kind of when the mood suited me. I really enjoyed Brother Kenneth James at the little baptist church down on Camp Karankawa road. Then changes took place in my world and I did not go to church again until I moved to Utah. My relationship with the holy spirit started much earlier but my knowledge did not really begin until I was in my early 30's. In Utah, from the front patio, where I lived, I had a perfect view of the Bountiful Utah temple. At night it was so peaceful to sit out and view it sitting there on the side of the mountain, emitting a light comparable to a lighthouse in a storm. I would sit, in the quiet of the night, enjoy the song of the crickets and let the "aura" of this unique building wash over me, leaving a sense of peace and calm that I had never felt. I always say that it was this temple that confirmed to me that I was where God needed me to be. It gave me a sense of belonging and comforted me when I was so very homesick for family and Texas. 
     When I became a member of the Church Of Jesus Christ of Later Day Saints, I truly began to understand and accept the Lord Jesus Christ into my life, I really "got it" I understood the meaning of the cross, the sacrifice, the resurrection, the power of repentance...I finally "got it", I enjoyed the fellowship on Sunday, relief society, (women's study group) bible study, sacrament meeting....I loved all of it, I could not get enough of it.....I am not going to say it was the "perfect" experience. I encountered people that lived in glass houses, I encountered many people that had let the blessings given them become the focus of their lives, in turn forgetting who had given them their bounty...(we all know a few like this) I could not get enough of the spirit in the church. I looked at it like this.....I would go to church on Sunday and absorb as much as I could, I would take in every word said and let the spirit wash over my entire being! I would go the entire week, each day losing a little spiritual steam, by the end of the week I was really in need of a "fill up" by the time Sunday got there, I was running on fumes, thank God in heaven it was Sunday so that I could go in and "fill up" Once my tank was replenished I knew that I could make it another week. I left the LDS church after several years which is another blog to be written. I continue to love the teachings, I love the tenants, the beliefs, I "get it" I would never say an ill word against any church, any spiritual meeting place, any religion...I began to seek out other churches to become a part of, I would leave these churches, go home feeling only half way full, open my scriptures, get "on bended knees" and fill my tank the remainder of the way.  Then came a relationship that I totally allowed to strip me of spirituality, not that it was not there inside of me anymore, but that I was made fun of, called a Jesus freak, did not fit in kind of thing, so I pushed it all on the back burner, I continued to pray, I continued to try and live Christ-like, but I failed miserably...how can he be the all in your world when you have stuck him somewhere behind you thinking you know better than he what you need in your world? After 13 years of being separated from my Father in Heaven and my savior Jesus Christ, I realized that all of the crap that had attached itself to me was just that crap, it was not of God, it was bad juju, it seemed satan had the upper hand and was quickly pulling me into the pits of hell, I knew that I had to make a change and I had to make it right then. I pulled out my bible, I got down "on bended knees" and I prayed. I prayed for forgivness, I prayed for salvation, I prayed for him to take me by the hand, pull me out of the dark abyss I was falling in to and "fill my tank" I have not looked back, I have moved forward my hand in his each day, I have turned it all over to him and it feels good, it feels wonderful , I share this feeling everywhere I go. I have a strong testimony of Jesus Christ, I know he died on the cross so that we could have everlasting life, I know that he lives, I  know what is pleasing to him and my Father in heaven and I try each day to be obedient. Many people think they are not receiving God blessings because they are not going to church, because they do not read the bible, because they do not pray as they should....spiritual blessing are earned by our character, by who we are, by the life we choose to lead....yes church is a wonderful way of sharing with other Christians, it is a way of going and "filling your tank" but it is not the only way. God does not deny you if you do not belong to "the one true church" Today, no matter where you are,  think of our Father in heaven, think about the sacrifice, think about the great love, think about what you need to do to be closer to him, take time to "fill your tank" our world is a very difficult one to live in, we need a "full tank" to get us from Sunday to Sunday. May you be blessed with an overpowering sense of the holy spirit today, may you be prompted to testify to another your love for Christ and may you feel his love in all that you do. God bless you!!!! 

~~Hear Him~~

  

  Sitting out this morning, once again bundled in my blankie, 48 degrees with a bit of a breeze, in the shade it is chilly. The birds are singing as it if it sunshine and 70, the trees are happy with the breeze as they sway to and fro, the sky is a mix of dark and white clouds with the sky as blue as I have ever seen it. Another beautiful day that God has given us:)
     Have you ever wanted something so badly and no matter how you attempted and tried to get it, something fell in the way, blocking you from your prize? Have you ever tried to move forward and for some reason the mountain you were trying to climb seemed to grow and become steeper right before your  eyes? This is happening to me, it seems the harder I try the more it becomes evident that this is not supposed to happen at this appointed time, if any of you know me, or read my blogs, you know that I am very very impatient, when I want something I want it right now! I know that God will allow roadblocks to deter you, I know that he will allow many things to stop us in our tracks when it is something that we do not need to be doing, I have read accounts of people who have been forging forward and been stopped in their tracks only to find that if they had gone any further disaster would have befallen them, so many times I have heard people say, thank God I was late, or I would have been involved in an accident, so many on September 11, recount how a certain incident or action kept them from being in the building when it was hit...I hear stories such as this all of the time. With the roadblocks I encountered yesterday and my ideas of pushing through them, maybe even knocking them down to get where I wanted to be, I am sitting here this morning, ALIVE, wondering if I would be had I not finally relented and ceased on my journey. I think so many times that the Holy Ghost tries to push us back but because we are hard headed we do not feel the push and then boom, something bad happens. It does not make my desire to be where I wanted to be any less, but it does make me thank God that I am here this morning, sharing with you!!!!
     I know that God is with us in all things, but I also know that when we refuse to hear him, when we think we have better answers than he has, that our way is the best way...when we have this attitude... he only step back and let us learn a lesson. My prayer is that today, you hear God, you feel the promptings from the Holy Spirit and you lay down your haughtiness and allow him to guide you...if might not be what you want, but it is his will. If you forget something at home, turn around and go back, even it it will make you late...if you feel uncomfortable in a situation you are involved in, take the discomfort as a sign that you are not supposed to be there, okay if it is the Doctor or Dentist the feeling you are having is probably not coming from the promptings of our Heavenly Father but from your own fear! I think we have to use prayer as a way to determine what he is telling us, when we pray and ask him he answers, we just have to hear him! May this day be filled with love and joy for you, may you "see" God in all that you do and may you be the "smile" that someone needs to get them through:) Love in Christ to each of you!!!!