singin' in the mornin', singin' in the evenin', singin' all day long!!!

Today's Verse

Satisfy us in the morning with your unfailing love, that we may sing for joy and be glad all our days.

— Psalm 90:14 (NIV)

Thoughts on Today's Verse...

What's the secret of having a good day? How about waking up and recognizing that we begin each day just as we ended the previous one -- we are in the grip of God's unfailing love. That should make our hearts stir with love and our voices sing with joy. This song should stir God's Spirit within us and lead us to a deep and profound thanksgiving that gladdens all of our days. So rather than waking up tired, cranky, and dreading another day, let this day be a reminder of God's grace in our daily lives and a reminder of God's promises in our hearts. Then, I don't think we're going to have any problem singing the rest of the day!

My Prayer...

Glorious Master and Eternal Father, thank you for pouring your love and joy into my heart through your Holy Spirit. Fill my heart and satisfy my life with a sense of your abiding and unfailing love. In the name of my loving Savior, Jesus. Amen.

www.verseoftheday.com

One Nation Under GOD!!! ~~ HONOR AND INTEGRITY~~

 

   Good morning and Happy Veteran's Day, I pray today that you will take time to get "on bended knees" and ask special mercies and blessings for all of the men and women who have sacrificed so much to keep us here on US soil safe and with freedoms! ~~Salute~~Salute~~Salute~~UNITED STATES MARINE CORP~~UNITED STATES ARMY~~UNITED STATES NAVY~~UNITES STATES AIR FORCE~~UNITED STATES COAST GUARD~~RESERVIST'S AND THE NATIONAL GAURD...I stand with my arms outstretched, with my heart open, and with the greatest and utmost respect.
     This morning in prayer, as I sat wrapped up in my favorite "Betty blankie" with my beanie on my head in the solitude of the outdoors, as I sat there meditating and in deep conversation with my Father in Heaven.  As I was thanking him for each of our armed forces, as I sat in reflection of all of the men and women who have sacrificed for our country and our freedom, I sat there in awe of all the things we take for granted, the freedom to worship God without fear, the freedom to speak without fear, the freedom of our own political views, not to mention the freedom of living, jobs, spending. Thank you Father in Heaven for these earthly angels who stand as a physical shield of protection for us, please as they shield us, wrap your arms around each of them and shield them from harm, bring all who are not on foreign soil home safely and each and every day let them feel the love and appreciation we have for them. We are the United States of America and we stand tall and proud!!!
      I prayed my normal and usual prayers asking God's mercy and grace for all of us who are facing any type of struggle today, asking God to bless each of us with our needs and to continue to give us the strength and the perseverance we need to get through our day. I asked God for special prayers for those who are standing in wait as their loved ones began their heavenly journey, allow them to feel your love for them, allow them to know they are very pleasing to you in the love and care they are giving to make this transition as easy and peace filled as they can. Reward them for their efforts Father, allow them this day to know that your faith in them is unwavering and that you are there to provide them with peace, comfort and calm. As I was closing my prayer I thought once again of all the men and women who have stood in harms way to allow me to sit out taking in the beauty that God has created this day, who have sacrificed so that I might write this blog each day without fear of punishment or chastisement!  God I love you so much! I ask these mercies and blessings in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

This is a beautiful story I read this morning, I read so many trying to find just the right one and I asked God to help me determine which one I should place with my blog. When I came to this one, I knew it was "the one" I knew that it would show the integrity and the love that there is in this world and it touched me so deeply.  Although the story is of a young Marine, I know in my heart any member of any branch of the Armed Forces would have done the same thing! You may be in different branches, just as t many people belong to different churches...but when the smoke and dust clear, it is still ONE NATION UNDER GOD that you serve...it is one GOD that we worship!


The Marine's Father


A nurse took the tired, anxious serviceman to the bedside.
"Your son is here, " she said to the old man. She had to repeat the words several times before they patient's eyes opened.

Heavily sedated, because of the pain of his heart attack, he dimly saw the young uniformed Marine standing outside the oxygen tent. He reached out his hand. the Marine wrapped his toughened fingers around the old man's limp ones, squeezing a message of love and encouragement.

The nurse brought a chair so that the Marine could sit beside the bed. All through the night the young Marine sat there in the poorly lighted ward, holding the old man's hand and offering him words of love and strength. Occasionally the nurse suggested that the Marine move away and rest awhile.

He refused. Whenever the nurse came into the ward, the Marine was oblivious of her and of the night noises of the hospital- the clanking of the oxygen tank, the laughter of the night staff members exchanging greetings the cries and moans of the other patients.

Now and then she heard him say a few gentle words. The dying man said nothing, only held tightly to his so all through the night.

Along towards dawn, the old man died. The Marine released the now lifeless hand he had been holding and went to tell the nurse. While she did what she had to do, he waited.

Finally, she returned. She started to offer words of sympathy, but the Marine interrupted her. "Who was that man?" he asked.

The nurse was startled, "He was your father," she answered.

"No, he wasn't," the marine replied.
"I never saw him before in my life."
"Then why didn't you say something when I took you to him?"

" I knew right away there had been a mistake but I also knew he needed his son, and his son just wasn't here. When I realized that he was too sick to tell whether or not I was his son, knowing how much he needed me, I stayed."

author unknown

When you are pleasing God, satan will ALWAYS try stop you!!!!

   

 Good morning and happy Friday! Sorry for being so late with my blog this morning, I slept in a little later today and boy does it feel good! Normally I am up until somewhere around 2 a.m. and rarely sleep passed 7 a.m., today was a treat for me!
     This morning in prayer I prayed for each of you, I asked God to be the force behind your actions today, I asked him to gently nudge you forward to the area he needed you most and to allow the Holy Ghost to impress upon you the "what you can do to make a difference" in someones day! I asked God to bless you abundantly for the good that you are doing and to gently take your hand and lead you if you were having issues or struggles! I bowed my head in humility and prayed for change for each of us, he knows what change is needed in our lives and I know that with prayer and continued faith he will intervene and show us the way! I prayed my normal usual prayers and then asked God about the issue I ran into yesterday, the issue of my praying "so much" of being "too spiritual" of being a "Jesus Freak" I asked him if I needed to back off or if I was pleasing him, I began to close my prayer when a wonderful warmth and a glorious peace crossed over my heart! I asked this because of the "from time to time" ridicule I receive over my blog and my prayers on facebook, I asked him if I was going "overboard" with my praying as I have been told I am doing! I asked him to fill me with peace and calm if I am where he wants me to be, if not to show me what I need to do to be more in his favor! The most beautiful, wonderful, warm feeling of peace came across my body, I began to weep and I knew that I am doing what he wishes for me to do! I will not waiver from this and I will "keep on keepin on" as I always say! I will not let the nay sayers tell me I am over the top, I will not listen to those who belittle me for praying and I will not allow the ones who wish nothing more to do with me for whatever their reasons are to deter me from my "earthly" journey.
     Today I pray that if you are struggling with a question of "right and wrong" that you will join me "on bended knees" and ask God, as I did, for a sign to show you if you are or not on the right track, when he verifies to you that you are, revel in the feeling you get, it is the best of the best heart feeling you will ever experience! Peace be with each of you and know that you are loved and so very appreciated.

Don't quit

The Don't Quit presentation is based on a famous poem which was written many years ago. The author of this poem is unknown. Sadly, in recent years a number of people have claimed ownership of the poem and some have even claimed to have written it themselves!

Here is the original poem in it's entirety:

When things go wrong, as they sometimes will,
When the road you're trudging seems all uphill,
When the funds are low and the debts are high,
And you want to smile, but you have to sigh,
When care is pressing you down a bit,
Rest, if you must, but don't you quit.
Life is queer with its twists and turns,
As every one of us sometimes learns,
And many a failure turns about,
When he might have won had he stuck it out;
Don't give up though the pace seems slow--
You may succeed with another blow.
Often the goal is nearer than,
It seems to a faint and faltering man,
Often the struggler has given up,
When he might have captured the victor's cup,
And he learned too late when the night slipped down,
How close he was to the golden crown.
Success is failure turned inside out--
The silver tint of the clouds of doubt,
And you never can tell how close you are,
It may be near when it seems so far,
So stick to the fight when you're hardest hit--
It's when things seem worst that you must not quit.
- Author unknown

   
     

WHY do they only call when they are in need ?????

   

 Happy Saturday morning, 54 degrees here in beautiful Utah, the sun has just topped the mountain and sitting in full shine of it the warmth is amazing. The birds are singing but have changed their song as of late, they seem to be singing a more intense song not the slow and solid melody that normally do, I think they are feeling the fall and trying to make ready for winter.
     In prayer this morning as I sat wrapped in my "Betty blankie" I felt so much peace and calm, my head leaned back on the chair, my eyes closed, feeling the sun on my face, the warmth in my heart and hearing the melody of the birds in the background, I thanked God for setting the mood for our morning chat. As I sat in humble conversation with him, I began to pray for all of the usual blessings, for all of the ones who have come to me asking for special, specific prayer, for those who are in such need, for those who are struggling and still do not believe in the power of prayer, for those who wrong others, for those who are weak but still refuse assistance. I was in mid prayer when a thought crossed over my heart that took me aback. I had to literally stop my prayer in mid sentence and define what I was feeling. When there is a tragedy we band together and pray, pray, pray...we plead with God for mercy, for his grace, for healing, for whatever the need be, we band together in prayer and more times than not, I see how him blesse those we are fervently praying for. ( having a hard time trying to put into words the feelings in my heart) ( please bear with me) When we are faced with "our lives flashing before our eyes, I wonder how often it is the first time God hears from us on the subject. In the song by Carrie Underwood, Jesus take the wheel ... do you suppose the driver of the car asked God to take the wheel before she backed out of the drive, asking for a journey without incident, (had been asking him to help her with her troubled life)? Or did she only begin to pray when the her life was put in peril? When the ones who find they have no food for dinner and no money to buy groceries pray for food, do you supposed they have thanked God for all the meals they have had to eat prior to being without? When a person finds they have an illness and they fall on bended knees asking God for a healing, do you suppose they have thanked God every day before for giving them health, for allowing them this blessing? (are you following me? Or am I confusing you?) When natural disaster hits and people lose their possessions, have they thanked him each day prior to the loss for all that they have been given? Do we have to hit a rock bottom and suffer before we begin to pray or do we pray each day thanking him for the blessings of what we have? The feeling that crossed my heart was that we need to thank him for the blessings each day not only when we are faced with tragedy or loss. We need to praise his holy name for the things we have right this moment and not just find "our voice" when we are at threat of losing what we have. If you lost your home, did not have food for your next meal, discovered that a loved one was dying, lost your job, where thrown in the lions den with no weapon...what is the first thing you would do??? PRAY...right??? When you rose up this morning, did you consciously say, "thank you for blessing me with yet another day? When you sat down for breakfast did you bow your head and thank him for the blessing of food? When you were getting dressed and ready to greet the day, did you thank him for allowing you clothing, running water, electricity, a roof over your head, a vehicle to take you from here to there, gas to fuel that vehicle, a job to afford you that fuel? When your children bid you goodbye when they were on their way out or you on your way out, did you stop and hug them and say I love you, then thank God for the gift of them?  In a nutshell......DO WE WAIT UNTIL WE ARE IN NEED BEFORE WE GET "on bended knees?" I am sure each of us has felt "used" before, we only get a call when someone is in need!!! How does that make you feel? Does it make you not want to answer the phone when that person calls? God answers all calls does he not???
     Let us all, each and every one of us become more mindful of the blessings we are given from the start of each day to the time we lay down to sleep at night. Let us thank him for the little things each day, (wait are they really that little) Let us not take for granted the things we have been given, let us not forget that without him we have nothing anyway! We need to appreciate more our day to day blessings and thank him. ( I pray you can feel through my words what I am feeling in my heart) and when a person asks for prayer, do we say..."I am praying for you and really stop what we are doing and lift the prayer" or do we say "I will pray for you, and then move on without actually asking God to bless them?" Today let us be more mindful that God blesses us every day, he stands at the ready to calm us when we are afraid, comfort us when we are hurting, and give us peace when we are frantic. Are we thanking him for standing at the ready, are we praising him for all he has given us so that we can progress and have eternal life, are we raising our arms toward him and giving our souls to him. He gave the most precious gift of all so that we could have the blessings that we have, he gave his "only begotten son" for us, Have we thanked him for that gift today? Could you give your child so that others could have life? Today I am getting back to the basics, I am acknowledging each of my blessings and I am going to begin by thanking him for all of the "little" things in my life, I am not going to take for granted anything from this point on and never again will I allow him to think I only need him when "I need him" I need him each and every second of the day and I will let him know this! I pray that  today you will take time to acknowledge your blessings if you haven't already and you get back to the basics with me!
     May this day your blessings continue to be abundant and may you not have to call upon him in the face of tragedy, only in the face of "thank you for blessing me" love in Christ to each of you. 

Just when you aren't looking, God slips someone in on you!!!!

Good evening, as another day comes quickly to a close I stand amazed at how fast the time is passing by!  CUTE STORY TIME: every once in a while something happens in my life that just merits being shared, I will from time to time I will share with you:) A week ago Wayde and I went to the park and had dinner, as we sat under the pavilion enjoying the quiet of the evening and enjoying each other a young man came up behind where we were sitting and began making finger gestures at someone across the park, he was just the cutest little guy and I felt the prompting to talk to him, I asked if he was flipping someone the bird and he sheepisly looked to the ground and said in a quiet little voice..."yes" I asked if he realized I had seen him doing this and again "yes" then he apologized. I did not want him to go away feeling embarrassed so I sparked up a conversation with him and soon we were in a really good conversation, we became "friends" he felt comfortable enough to sit down with us and really chat...I asked about school, his friends, his family, he asked me and Wayde questions and we just got to know one another... in talking about the flipping off thing I asked if he had a temper and did he get into fights to which he answered "yes" we talked about that and I gave him some words of wisdom to help him in getting through his anger...After about an hour he said he had to go and took his leave, I sat for a moment pondering him and thinking that he was a delightful young man, just a little mischievous as many 11 year old are. I really had enjoyed my evening:) Today as I was sitting under my big shade tree in the yard I head a young voice say, "hey, do you remember me?" I looked up and there he was, along with his twin brother and his step brother, he said "this is the lady I was telling you about, shes really smart and knows a lot of stuff, like what I told you about fighting, ask her she will tell you what you should do":) My heart was filled with happiness that he remembered me and that he had listened to the things we had talked about... his twin brother came closer to me and said, "my brother said you told him he can be anything he wants to be if he tries really hard!" I said "yes, I did tell him that" he then said to me, "can I be anything I want to be too" It humbled me to my knees, to see that a kid just needed that type of affirmation regarding his life!  We talked for a while and then the step brother asked, "can I ask you a question?" " of course" I said, he asked me if I went to church, then he asked me if he would not get to "float up to heaven" if he did not go to church... WOW, I was so excited to be able to talk to him about this. I helped him to understand about our Father in Heaven and in our savior Jesus Christ..after the little chat in which all three listened intently on what I was saying, I felt so very warm inside, my love for life got so much stronger and my love for our Lord and Savior filled my heart to full capacity! Funny how something like this can re- affirm that God's love can be shared just by striking up a little conversation, how we can be a positive influence in any situation...imagine, a flip of the middle finger go t this started and I have no doubt that I will have visits on a regular basis from my three new friends:) God is so amazing and I love living my life, I love the opportunity to meet new people and share with them my love of Christ! I love you for taking time to read my blog and for offering your prayers up for me and with me! God bless you this evening with something that tugs at your hearstrings  and allows you to feel his unconditional love!

     Tonight I ask you to join me in prayer, so many are in need. Let us pray for those who are suffering, whether it be illness, whether it be finances, whether if be loss, fear, darkness, being alone. Father we come to you "on bended knees" we know that you know the desires of each of our hearts, that you have the book of our lives and you know the direction we need to be going, we know that your will be done but sometimes it is hard father, please give each of us the strength to hold fast to the rod, to keep our faith at an all time high and to give us courage to continue to believe in the whole of you. Father bless those who cry in sadness, in hurt, in heartache with a new found sense of you, lay your hands on each of us and give us the "thumbs up" in our hearts that this too shall pass and that as long as we allow you to guide us  we will be A OK, I love you so much heavenly Father, I confess this love to all and I stand tall in my faith. I ask mercies and graces from the depth of my heart and know that miracles can happen only by you. In the name of Jesus Christ, I lift these prayers, amen and amen again!