Happy New Year

Well, hey - it's been over a year - I admit it - since I last posted. But I had to get on here and think of the new year and decade that is upon us. There have been some years in the past that I've said, 'thank God, that year is gone and a new one is coming!' Our pastor, this week, said that we should be thankful for even the smallest blessings. 2009 was tough for a lot of people, but we made it through. Hopefully, we made it through running closer with the Lord, rather than lagging behind in our messes.

My mom sent out an e-mail from her daily devotional from Joni Eareckson Tada. It was a reminder that no matter what heartaches we faced this year, there is encouragement in realizing that Jesus Himself will wipe away every tear. "Commit afresh and anew to deepen your walk with Jesus Christ in the new year, preserving for yourself an inheritance that can never perish, spoil, or fade, kept in heaven for you (I Peter 1:4)".

I know a lot of people who are facing the biggest challenges of their lives in their marriages, finances, work, and personal traumas. It's so hard to watch them go through these times, knowing that while I can help carry the load by listening, crying with them, and praying for them, it's still ultimately up to them to get into the yoke with the Lord Jesus Christ. He alone is the One who strengthens and gives wisdom, peace, and comfort when everything is in chaos.

I pray for my mom, husband, children, and siblings that they will call upon the One who answers - both to heal the heartache, and to give wisdom in going forward. God always calls us forward, never backward. For my grandchildren, I pray that they will rise up to the heights to which God has called them; that they will not be pulled down by other interests, but that they will hear the Spirit in their lives calling them to a higher place in Jesus.

For my church family, I pray that we will go forward in God's kingdom reaching out to grab those that are lost, so that they would be saved and delivered, to know the full blessings of God on their lives.

For my nation, especially, I pray that our leaders will either listen to God and shun their greed, selfishness, and sin, or that God will put them aside and raise up others who will put this country back to its Constitution!

Lord, help me to show mercy, to pray continually for those that are hurting and facing the biggest challenges of their lives. I know that I don't have answers, nor am I the answer, but Lord, I call upon you to help me to encourage and speak Your word into their lives, that they may see You in the midst of their troubles. Lord heal marriages and hearts and minds! Thank you, Amen!