The lord has my heart in a special place today. I ask that you join me in a special prayer for this is the day that the Lord has made and We will rejoice and be glad in it.
Today’s Prayer
Father, Today I want to pray for all the widows and widowers in the world. They have lost their soul mates, their closest confidante, their special loved one, and life’s help-mate. This is not an easy thing. Whether married a short time or married for 50 years or more, young or older, the loss is great. I pray for comfort, for peace that only You can give, for Your presence to fill that hole in their lives, for extra special grace from You. I also pray that You would give them precious, understanding friends to lend a listening ear or a shoulder to cry on, just to be there and be quiet sometimes, to help them with things they need help with, and to have fun with. And bless those friends for their ministry. Thank You Lord for Your ever-present Spirit, In the wonderful name of Jesus I pray, Amen.
Let’s eat.
Free to Stand
That is why the Israelites cannot stand against their enemies…. ~ Joshua 7:12
It doesn’t matter how strong you are. It doesn’t matter whether you have the greatest resources and talent. It doesn’t matter if you have the best plans and procedures. If you are a child of God it will all fail if you have a break in your spiritual armor.
This is the message God gave to Joshua when he attempted to go against a small army at Ai, which was the Israelites’ second battle in the Promised Land. Sometimes we try to figure out why we are not successful in an effort. We look at all aspects of our performance to see what went wrong. For the people of Israel, it was not easily seen on the surface. Everything seemed just as it should be from Joshua’s vantage point, so when his army was soundly defeated, he cried out to God, “Ah, Sovereign Lord, why did You ever bring this people across the Jordan to deliver us into the hands of the Amorites to destroy us?” (Josh. 7:7)
The people had been defeated because God could not bless them. One person had violated the covenant with God. They were not to take any possessions from the first battle, but one person failed to live up to this, and the whole army suffered. You see, sin makes our armor vulnerable to attack from Satan, who then gains permission from God to attack us in the area where we have failed to uphold righteousness. If we break down in moral purity, Satan comes in and establishes a stronghold. If we give place to bitterness and unforgiveness, we will break fellowship with God and others. If we become money-focused, we will fall into greed and deception. It is a vicious cycle.
No matter who you are or what position you hold, you need to examine your armor today. Make sure you are not susceptible to attack. Begin from a solid spiritual foundation and your chances of success will be great.
Quote of the Day
Bad decisions can take you out of God’s will but never out of His reach.
~G. Eugene Sterrett~