Thankful for those who hold me up

Today God put on my heart a strong sense of gratitude for all the friends I have in my life. Being in the military I have lived in 5 different states in 8 years. All along making more friends than one could ever even ask for. I know and love so many people it is just hard to even believe sometimes. It is nearly impossible to keep in touch with all of them, but I still hold each and every one of them dear to my heart, and often remember the impact they made on my life during the season of my life that God placed them in. They are such a gift from God.

In Exodus 17:8-16 Joshua is fighting the Amalekites. Moses tells Joshua that he will stand on top of the hill with the staff of God in my hands. Verse 11 says that as long as Moses held up his hands, the Israelites were winning, but whenever he lowered his hands, the Amalekites were winning. Joshua could not defeat his enemy on his own, and Moses could not do it for him either. But what Moses did do was stand on that mountain for his friend and hold his hands up for God's strength. If you read even further, verse 12 tells us that when Moses' hands grew tired, they took a stone and put it under him and he sat on it. Aaron and Hur held his hands up—one on one side, one on the other—so that his hands remained steady till sunset.

Talk about support from your friends when you are in the midst of a battle!! I don't think I could have found a better example! Through this group of men relying on one another for strength, God brought victory! God empowered them to work together and defeat the Amalikites.

I had my sweet friend call me the other night when she needed to be lifted up in prayer. We both felt empowered after taking the time to pray together. Anther friend e-mailed me yesterday filling me in on some of the struggles she and her family are facing right now. I felt compassion for her as I know I am struggling with some of the same issues, and we agreed to lift one another up in prayer.

The people in my life that I feel the closest to are those who have humbled them selves enough to share their struggles with me and I have felt welcome to lay my burdens on them at times. What a privilege it is to experience spiritual victory with a friend. I am sure God delights in our commitment to hold one another up in His strength. What a mistake it is when we let pride stand in the way of allowing others to share in our personal battles. When we do not ask for support, we cheat ourselves and others from being able to experience the joy of victory in the end.

Here is one of my favorite verses:
Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their work: If one falls down, his friend can help him up. But pity the man who falls and has no one to help him up! Ecclesiastes 4:9-10

The consiquences of prayerlessness

If I try to think of anything in my life that comes in the way of drawing closer to the Lord, two things come to my mind right away. One is lack of prayer and the other its scripture memory. I have been convicted of both and haven't made much effort to do anything about it. Today I am focusing on the prayer part.

I am doing the Beth Moore Bible study right now at church. We are digging deep into the details of the Old Testament tabernacle, and right now we are studying the altar of incense and it's relation to prayer. This morning Beth gave 4 scriptures about prayer. They were:
1) Isaiah 50:4-5 2) Mark 14:38 3) Philippians 4:6-7 4) James 4:2

From these 4 scriptures I observed the following about prayer. (numbered by the verse)
1) Prayer is me obediently listening to the Lord and what He has to say to me
2) Prayer keeps me from temptation, and ultimately sin
3) It keeps me from worry and fear (more sin!)
4) It provides all that I need...what I lack is because I have failed to pray for it

My lack of prayer is such a disregard for the ultimate reason Jesus gave his life for me. His whole purpose for living is so I can commune with God. I am not righteous enough as I am, and Jesus stands in for me, placing me in a right relationship with God.

Therefore He is able, once and forever, to save everyone who comes to God through Him. He lives forever to plead with God on their behalf. Hebrews 7:25

working towards......mature and complete, not lacking anything

I read my last entry and couldn't believe it has been over a month since I last wrote. I have had a lot going on in my life, and chose to take a much needed break from a few things. I have missed keeping track of all that God is teaching me. But, don't be mistaken, although I have not been able to write it all, the Lord has taught me more in the last month than he probably has in quite a while. I have had health issues, family issues, neighbor problems, children struggles and more! God has gotten me through it all. I thankfully am feeling better, and looking forward to writing about some of what God is teaching me everyday. Learning is a daily thing for me. I wake up everyday wondering what God teach me today. I use this Blog as a way to bring it all together and keep track of my growth and maturity as God brings me closer and closer to His righteousness everyday.

Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. James 1:2-4