God's Provisions

Dearest Lord,
In the 3rd week in June, someone that my boss did not know approached him in another building on campus and gave him an envelope that had just my name on it and asked him to deliver it for him. The envelope was   Inside was a piece of paper with PHIL 4:19 on it and enclosed was $200 in cash!  We needed it to pay the taxes we had forgotten about on our cars and for meds and groceries.

Lord, you have done it again!
This week on Tuesday July 23, 2013, there was an envelope on my desk with an encouraging verse from Colossians in it as well as a $25 gift card from Wal-Mart.  Lord, we really needed that at that moment.  Dick's check would come the next day, but we needed groceries.
 I had to take him to the doctor...another miracle.  He has been very ill for about 10 days.  He finally put a request in on the internet to the doctor's office Monday evening asking for an appointment.  Usually that can take about 2 weeks for him to get one.  They called on Tuesday morning at 7:30 am and told him to come at 2:40 THAT DAY!  If he didn't take that appointment, it would be September before he could be seen.  My bosses told me to take the time that afternoon and the next afternoon to take him for the appointment and the chest X-Ray the next day, without taking the time off my allotted sick or vacation time.  The antibiotic they put him on did not cost anything either...still amazed at that!
Friday July 26, 2013, there was another envelope delivered by someone our employee to whom it was given didn't know.  Inside was PHIL 4:19 and "God is with you and will take care of you" on the paper.  Inside was $160 in cash!

Oh Lord, You are our provider and an on time God.  Dick's car needs to be inspected and the tailpipe and muffler will need to be replaced before my car will pass inspection in August.
You have provided ample precious yard helpers this summer in the Summer RAs and a student from Liberty.  They not only help, they come to visit Dick and spend time with him because they want to! Our neighbor Alan mowed our lawn yesterday because our mower is broken, and Brien Sabella came to do branch clean-up and weed-eating!
How great the Father's love for us!
How blessed beyond all measure!
That He would give His only Son,
To make this wretch His treasure!
Lord, as long as I live, I will never understand why You love us...but am ever so thankful and blessed that You do!

Journeys

Psalm 33:11"But the LORD's plans stand firm forever; his intentions can never be shaken."
Romans 8:28 "And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them."

Lord,
Sometimes you ask us to walk journeys we would never have chosen.  But, you know what is best for us.  Dick is walking a very difficult journey and has for sometime now.  I do not know why You have allowed it, but know that You have not caused it either.  Sin has tainted this world and because of that we have death and disease. Lord, I pray for strength for him and me as we wlak this together.  I pray that you will encourage His hearyt that You ARE with him in this walk.  Thank You that you have redeemed us andin heaven there will be none of this and we will all be forever healthy!
Even so, Lord Jesus, quickly come!

Lord, Anger Has Made Me a Fool

"Human anger does not produce the righteousness God desires." James 1:20  "Fools vent their anger, but the wise quietly hold it back." Proverbs 29:11  "Control your temper, for anger labels you a fool." Ecc 7:9   Lord,  I must confess to You that in my lifetime, I have let human anger make me a fool.  When I was young, fits of anger were prevalent in our home.  With 9 people living in one household and none controlled daily be the Holy Spirit ...well, You know it all!  When I left home, I carried that anger with me.  When I got married, I carried that anger with me.  As I grew and started caring what others thought of me, I was in control more, but for the wrong reasons.  I didn't want to be thought a fool.   I did not know until after I trusted You as Savior and Lord that the type of anger I was venting was not just bad attitude, but sin.  My children and husband can attest that it has taken years of walking with You, understanding life, people, and the enemy more, that my fits of anger have become rare...but the wolf is still there ready to display its ugly head at a given moment if I am not very close to you.       I experienced the grace and mercy of my husband July 2nd, Lord, and am ever so grateful.  I had put a dish rag and kitchen hand towel in the sink in the utility room and poured in bleach, shout, laundry soap, and turned on the hot water to half fill the basin.  Lord, I got distracted and pulled away from that sink...for about 10 minutes!  I heard something funny from the kitchen and went out to see what the strange noise was and the room was flooded with hot soapy, Clorox water!  I had forgotten to turn the water off!!!    I was angry at myself for being so stupid.   BUT, my dear husband Dick, who could have been really nasty and angry at me, held his tongue and just wanted to be helpful.      Lord, it took 3 hours to sop up and clean up the mess I had made.  The water had gotten under loose tiles, under the water heater, in the top tray of Dick's tool box, and under the washer and dryer.   Why the appliances did not short out and were not damaged, was by Your grace alone.  On the good side, that floor has never been so clean!    And under the tiles was Clorox, so any damp areas would not mildew.       Lord, we are fallible for sure, and we all do dumb things, rebellious things, and either misunderstand others or are misunderstood.   Help us...help ME to always turn to You for grace and mercy in times when I feel that old anger wolf start to rear its ugly head so it can spew venom out on those around me.  Seal my lips, Lord, so I do not say or do things in anger that will be remembered by others for their lifetime.        One of the fruits of Your Spirit is self control.  If I am out of control, it is because You are not filling me,  If You are not filling me, it is because I am not allowing it.  Lord, forgive me!      I find that most of my anger sprang from feeling "put upon" by others.  By that I mean being pulled away from what I wanted to do to something I didn't want to do; something that was not in my plan.   As a child it was not wanting to obey, work, share,  tend to others needs, or help to do things that weren't fun.    As a young mom, it was being pulled away from much needed sleep to tend to crying children when I saw no need for them to be crying or while I was busy doing "my" things" having to clean up unnecessary messes, stopping fights, and dealing with rebellion in the children.  Now as an aging adult, it is dealing with aging bodies that forget things, and won't work the way they used to.      Lord, I know in Heaven, we will not have this ugly sin to content with.   Thank You, Jesus, that we do not have to wait for heaven to lead a more angry free life.  We just need to walk daily very close to You and realize that You are in control, not us; that we should always expect the unexpected nasty things of life and praise You each moment they do not occur and then give You the SACRIFICE of praise when they do.