Keeping God in My Day

"This is the day the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it."
(Psalm 118:24 NIV)

I like my busy days filled with purpose. My mind and heart are renewed when I am productive with my time; especially when I am aware of God's presence.

Today my busy day has felt like I have been on a treadmill heading no where. I have been pulled here and there. It has been a difficult day to focus on anything that really needs to be done.

I feel a pity party ready to launch.

As I pull into my driveway, I catch sight of the Rose of Sharon lining the back of my yard. While I have been busy hurrying here and there flowers of pink, purple, and white have burst into bloom. As I walk to the back yard I am amazed at the beautiful display.

I spend time walking along the row of flowers. I pull some branches down to look closer at the beauty of the colors and their rich centers. I take some pictures. I feel myself enjoying the pause in my day. I am feeling refreshed.

Spending time in my garden has brought God closer. I have a better perspective and attitude within. I have found joy and happiness in my day.

My prayer for today is that I don’t lose sight of God throughout my day; that I guard my time, not allowing busyness and distractions to crowd out the blessings He has for me.

What are you Doing Today? Romans 15:23-33

As a teenager I knew I wanted to participate in foreign mission activities. I studied my Bible, went to talks given by missionaries, and became pen pals to several missionaries. Through the years, opportunities to actually go on a mission trip never materialized. I don't know when it happened, but I realized God was not calling me to serve in the mission field. He changed the desire of my heart by making me aware of other things He wanted me to do. Knowing this helped me get onto the path He had planned for my life.

Paul yearned to go to Rome. He would see His fellow Christians, fellowship with them, and encourage them in their faith. Being with them would be very pleasing and refreshing to Paul. God, however, had work for Paul elsewhere. He was needed to be a messenger of charity for the poor among the believers in Jerusalem. Paul, without question, reset his priorities to do the will of God first. He would go to Rome, but the trip was planned for later.

Paul knew that his life, his joy, depended on the will of God, "so that by God's will I may come to you with joy." (v. 32a)


Prayer:
Lord, help me make it my heart's desire to please you in what I do today and every day. Help me reset my priorities to get onto the path you have laid out for me today and for the rest of my life. Amen

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Who's Thinking of You? Psalm 40:9-17

When was the last time you got a phone call and someone said, "I was just thinking of you?" You might have returned the thoughts. I received an email this morning with the subject line: "Thinking of you." It was from a friend I hadn’t heard from for a while. Knowing I am in the thoughts of others is a source of great comfort and peace. It is like a security blanket wrapped around me through the ups and downs of life.

David is secure in God’s protection. He is filled with praise, giving his testimony, and remembering God's faithfulness and salvation in his life. God's love and truth is with him. It doesn't matter how much his enemies pursue him or whatever life brings, David holds on to God. David knows God is thinking about him. This gives him strength to rise above his circumstances rather than be overcome by them.

In his closing words, David brings together prayer and thanksgiving, “Yet I am poor and needy; may the Lord think of me. You are my help and my deliverer; O my God, do not delay.”

Prayer
Father God, I praise Your name. I am grateful that no matter how bad it gets, You are always thinking of me. You are my help and my deliverer. Amen

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Be Prepared - Mark 8:31-9:1

Remember Trivial Pursuit? The object of the game is to move around the board by correctly responding to trivia questions in various categories. While Trivial Pursuit is a fun game, it should not be our way of living. Busy lives make it easy to get lost in the pursuit of things we think are important.

In today's scripture, Jesus starts teaching the disciples about Himself. He is very clear that He must suffer, be rejected, die, and return to life after three days.

Peter doesn't get the message. He takes Jesus aside and rebukes Him. In response, Jesus admonishes Peter. Satan has put wrong thoughts into Peter's mind. Peter is in pursuit of stopping Jesus on His mission.

Jesus makes it clear that souls are too valuable to lose in pursuit of things that don't really matter. No matter what shame and humiliation or what we may have to endure, He must be at the center of our lives.

Satan constantly prowls around waiting for opportunities to get us to sin. He puts temptations before us to pursue wrong things and get us off track. Sometimes we don't see it, sometimes we know we are headed on the wrong path, but we sin anyway.

To guard our lives against sin and temptation we must be prepared by keeping our faith in God strong, being in the Word of God constantly, and having a meaningful daily prayer life. Remember our soul is priceless. We shouldn’t give it to anyone but God.

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