MEMORIAL DAY 2021 - A TRIBUTE

 Remembering those who gave it all so that we can live in freedom. Speech from Ronald Reagan, 1985. Arlington National Cemetery

God bless to the soldiers who are not here with us will always be remembered in our hearts and these soldiers have been in our country for a very long time and they worked so hard for our country and these soldiers were so brave and so strong to fight and conquer our country and for the people and wanted to say thank you soldiers for fighting for our country and giving us the courage to say to these soldiers thank you and God Bless to these soldiers and we love you all and again Gold Bless you!

CHECK BACK NEXT MONDAY FOR THE

MONDAY QUOTES.....

Howard Smith Jr. Memorial Day May 30, 2021 Piano music to touch your soul.

 

An Emotional Arrival......

 

“I’m at the airport in Dallas, waiting for my flight home to DC from El Paso, and something incredible is happening.

Our incoming plane is carrying the remains of an American pilot shot down over Vietnam in 1967. His remains were only recently recovered and identified and brought back to the US.

As we wait at the gate, we’re told that Captain Knight is coming home to Dallas. When he left from this very airport to fight in Vietnam his 5 year old son came to the airfield and waved goodbye. It was the last time he would see his father alive.

Today the pilot of the plane bringing Capt. Knight back to Dallas is his son.

The entire terminal has come to watch this arrival. It was an Incredible moment to watch.

The entire airport fell silent.

For those asking, they announced it over the intercom. The gate agent was very emotional as he told the story over the PA. They handed out American flags to everyone at the gate.”

 

— Jackson Proskow

KXLY 920 News

Aug. 8, 2019

Sunday Thought: Part Five of Five: Patterns for Prayer

 

Because my husband’s health was in decline, I had cut back on my traveling and speaking so that I could stay home and care for him. As a result, I had time to be quiet and listen more to the whispers of the Spirit. He revealed things to me in the stillness that I’m not sure I would have heard in my prior chaotic busyness.

 

Looking back over this time when I was closer to home, I am intrigued to recognize that God intentionally placed me there to focus more on prayer and assigned me the privilege of calling others to prayer. As of this writing, five different times God has deeply burdened me to offer online prayer initiatives. Each one has been distinctly different. Each one drew tens of thousands of participants. And for each one I wrote prayers that I sent out by email on a daily basis during the initiative. My purpose was not just to ask people to pray, but to lead them in prayer so that we would all be on the same page as we prayed. God poured out His blessing on these initiatives, and we have seen many, many answers to our prayers.

 

The response I received to these initiatives helped me grasp the fact that many people want to pray, but like me, they just need some help and direction in their prayers. Therefore, because I have challenged you this week to pray the Daniel Prayer, I wondered if you might also be more inclined to do so if I led you in it.

 

Below I have written a prayer for one of the sections that I outlined in Daniel’s prayer. These prayers are not meant to be ritualistic or formalized. They are simply offered as patterns for your own prayers.

 

A Prayer That is Clear

 

You do not have, because you do not ask God:

                                                          James 4:2

Great God of Creation. God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
Living God of Daniel.
God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
We worship You alone.
In the darkness, You are our Light.
In the storm, You are our Anchor.
In the face of terrorism, You are our Shield.
In time of war, You are our Peace.
In our weakness, You are our Strength.
In our grief, You are our Comfort.
In our despair, You are our Hope.
In our confusion, You are our Wisdom.
In times of uncertainty, when buildings implode, bombs explode, stock markets slide,
people commit suicide, banks collapse, businesses are bankrupted, and homes are foreclosed . . . When the nations rage and the people imagine a vain thing . . .
When the rulers take a stand and gather together against the Lord . . .
When the earth beneath us breaks apart . . .
When the sky above us is torn by lightning and thunder . . .
When the air around us is a swirling dervish of violence . . .
When the mountains fall into the midst of the sea . . .
When the waters roar and foam . . .
When nations are in uproar and kingdoms fall . . . When everything gives way, You are the Rock on which we stand! Save us from ourselves. Free us from the chokehold of sin. Protect us from our enemies. Spare us from Your judgment.

We are pleading with You for an outpouring of Your Spirit on us, on our families, on our churches, and on our nation. Send down Your Spirit in Pentecostal fullness! Captivate us by Your love! Rend our hearts with deep conviction and sorrow for our sin! Draw us back to the foot of the Cross. Plunge us beneath the fountain filled with His blood, then . . .

Revive our hearts! Fill our hearts! Ignite our hearts . .

 

. . . with a pure and holy passion to love You and to live our lives for You and for Your glory alone! Then use us to bring revival to the hearts of Your people!

 

We are asking You to saturate us in Your holiness, purity, righteousness, justice, power, mercy, grace, truth, and love. Saturate us in Yourself, so that all may see You reflected in us.

 

We are asking You to revive the confidence of our faith and the authenticity of our personal relationship with You.

 

We are asking for one more great spiritual awakening before Jesus Christ returns to rapture the church and bring judgment on the world.

 

O Holy God, look on Your people who are called by Your Name. Hear our prayer. Listen to our pleas. Have mercy on us. Let the Fire of the Holy Spirit fall fresh on us!

 

You have promised that You will do whatever we ask in Jesus’ name. So please, answer us. Answer us! Answer us in JESUS’ name.

 

For the glory of Your Name.

Amen.

This devotional is drawn from The Daniel Prayer: Prayer That Moves Heaven and Changes Nations by Anne Graham Lotz. Used by permission

Paul Harvey: WE THE PEOPLE

We The People…

Need to stand up!!

And keep America together from different cultures.

Ride the different timeliness.

Fair use 1976

 

I read a recent (more or less) a biography of the late great, Paul Harvey...one of the best, if not the best, newscaster and commentator that truly loved living. People were his center attention and, his way of delivery in speech and write-ups of his stories was fabulous...truly fabulous.

 

This man loved his country - America. I sure wish he was still around to "help" us in these most troubling times. What a great background of the signers of the great, Declaration of Independence. We NEED this now to be seen.

FRIDAY FUNNIES.... JUST FOR LAUGHS

 

How to Get to Heaven?

A teacher asked the children in her Sunday School class:

"If I sold my house and my car, had a big garage sale and gave all my money to the church, would I get into heaven?"

"NO!" the children all answered.

"If I cleaned the church every day, mowed the yard, and kept everything neat and tidy, would I get into heaven?"

Again, the answer was "NO!"

"Well," she continued, "then how can I get to heaven?"

In the back of the room, a five-year-old boy shouted out, "You gotta be dead!"

 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

A Child's Point of View!

The story of Adam and Eve was being carefully explained in the children's Sunday School class. Following the story, the children were asked to draw some picture that would illustrate the story. Little Bobby drew a picture of a car with three people in it. In the front seat was a man and in the back seat, a man and a woman. The teacher was at a loss to understand how this illustrated the lesson of Adam and Eve. Little Bobby was prompt with his explanation. "Why, this is God driving Adam and Eve out of the garden!"

THE BIBLE IS A BOOK OF SELF-CONFIDENCE

 

The Bible is a book about Self-confidence that tells us that God created something in you that is different, important, enabling, and identifiable.  Self-confidence is recognizing those things.

1.    Recognition of Your Personal Difference…

Jeremiah 1:5 Before I formed (pre-chose your divine purpose) thee in the belly I knew (acquainted with what you could bring forth) thee, and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified (made you holy, unique and unlike any other) thee, and I ordained (chose) thee a prophet unto the nations.

2.    You Must learn to celebrate and honor the difference in your gift.

Somebody out there needs your difference…who are they…where are they?

3.    Distinguish worthy relationships from destructive relationships

There are four kinds of people in your life: those who add, those who subtract, those who divide, and those who multiply. Those who do not increase you inevitably will decrease you.       -Mike Murdock

4.    Develop your self-portrait through replaying past accomplishments

Whether grandiose or insignificant, your successes have gotten you to where you are today. You’ve come this far…….that says something about you.

 

SOURCE:    https://lnkd.in/eyQm8Du

U.S. Navy Seal Creed

 

The Apostle Paul (1st Corinthians 9:26-27) would have made a great SEAL for the Gospel!

-------------------------------------------------

The creed

"In times of war or uncertainty there is a special breed of warrior ready to answer our Nation's call. A common man with uncommon desire to succeed. Forged by adversity, he stands alongside America's finest special operations forces to serve his country, the American people, and protect their way of life. I am that man.

 

My Trident is a symbol of honor and heritage. Bestowed upon me by the heroes that have gone before, it embodies the trust of those I have sworn to protect. By wearing the Trident I accept the responsibility of my chosen profession and way of life. It is a privilege that I must earn every day.

 

My loyalty to Country and Team is beyond reproach. I humbly serve as a guardian to my fellow Americans always ready to defend those who are unable to defend themselves. I do not advertise the nature of my work, nor seek recognition for my actions. I voluntarily accept the inherent hazards of my profession, placing the welfare and security of others before my own.

 

I serve with honor on and off the battlefield. The ability to control my emotions and my actions, regardless of circumstance, sets me apart from other men. Uncompromising integrity is my standard. My character and honor are steadfast. My word is my bond.

 

We expect to lead and be led. In the absence of orders I will take charge, lead my teammates and accomplish the mission. I lead by example in all situations.

 

I will never quit. I persevere and thrive on adversity. My Nation expects me to be physically harder and mentally stronger than my enemies. If knocked down, I will get back up, every time. I will draw on every remaining ounce of strength to protect my teammates and to accomplish our mission. I am never out of the fight.

 

We demand discipline. We expect innovation. The lives of my teammates and the success of our mission depend on me – my technical skill, tactical proficiency, and attention to detail. My training is never complete.

 

We train for war and fight to win. I stand ready to bring the full spectrum of combat power to bear in order to achieve my mission and the goals established by my country. The execution of my duties will be swift and violent when required yet guided by the very principles that I serve to defend.

 

Brave men have fought and died building the proud tradition and feared reputation that I am bound to uphold. In the worst of conditions, the legacy of my teammates steadies my resolve and silently guides my every deed. I will not fail."
---------------------------------------------------------

"Therefore I do not run like a man running aimlessly; I do not fight like a man beating the air. No, I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize."                                                                 1st Cor. 9:26-27 (NIV)

"...I have worked much harder, been in prison more frequently, been flogged more severely, and been exposed to death again and again..."                                                                              2nd Corinthians 11:23 (NIV)

"Endure hardship with us like a good soldier of Christ Jesus..."                                                                             2 Timothy 2:3

 

The Epitaph by Merrit Malloy

 

When I die

Give what’s left of me away

To children

And old men that wait to die.

And if you need to cry,

Cry for your brother

Walking the street beside you.

And when you need me,

Put your arms

Around anyone

And give them

What you need to give to me.

I want to leave you something,

Something better

Than words

Or sounds.

Look for me

In the people I’ve known

Or loved,

And if you cannot give me away,

At least let me live on your eyes

And not on your mind.

You can love me most

By letting

Hands touch hands,

By letting

Bodies touch bodies,

And by letting go

Of children

That need to be free.

Love doesn’t die,

People do.

So, when all that’s left of me

Is love,

Give me away.

The Epitaph by Merrit Malloy

 

MONDAY QUOTES: Christian Quotes About Tough Times

 

Christian Quotes About Tough Times

The basic premise of religion– that if you live a good life, things will go well for you– is wrong. Jesus was the most morally upright person who ever lived, yet He had a life filled with the experience of poverty, rejection, injustice, and even torture.        — Timothy J. Keller

 

Pain insists upon being attended to. God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks in our consciences, but shouts in our pains. It is his megaphone to rouse a deaf world.                ― C.S. Lewis

 

The Christian life is not a constant high. I have my moments of deep discouragement. I have to go to God in prayer with tears in my eyes, and say, ‘O God, forgive me,’ or ‘Help me.’    — Billy Graham

 

Life is not a straight line leading from one blessing to the next and then finally to heaven. Life is a winding and troubled road. Switchback after switchback. And the point of biblical stories like Joseph and Job and Esther and Ruth is to help us feel in our bones (not just know in our heads) that God is for us in all these strange turns. God is not just showing up after the trouble and cleaning it up. He is plotting the course and managing the troubles with far-reaching purposes for our good and for the glory of Jesus Christ.            ― John Piper 

 

 

What about you?

What are you favorite Christian quotes?

COMMENT BELOW…….

HOWARD SMITH JR. PENTECOST SUNDAY 2021

 

Sunday Thought: Part Four of Five : Prevailing in Prayer

 

Several years ago in my ministry, I uncovered a full-time staff person who was simultaneously working on another job. When I confronted her with it, she became irate, accused me of lying, insisted she was entitled to supplement her income, and appealed over my head to the ministry’s board of directors. After hearing her thoroughly state her case, the board unanimously recommended that she be terminated.

 

Suddenly I was left with a ministry that was facing four major national and international initiatives within the next nine months but without the directors who would have helped me accomplish them. To say I prayed is an understatement. I was launched into that stratosphere of faith where God—and God alone—was my refuge and strength. I was wholly centered on Him, knowing beyond a shadow of a doubt that if He did not help me, I would not be helped and my ministry would collapse.

 

Within twenty-four hours God sent His messenger to me with an immediate answer. The messenger was the husband of one of my board members. I was attending a meeting that just “happened” to have been previously scheduled for the day after I had learned of the mass exodus of directors from my ministry. My board member and her husband, Vicki and Ray Bentley, were also among others at the meeting. The three of us had just finished discussing my situation when we walked from lunch to the next conference seminar.

As we walked through the hotel corridor, they told me they had just been to Mount Vernon, the home place of President Washington. My head was spinning, and I thought, “What does that have to do with the situation I’m in?” But I listened. Ray went on to say that he loved George Washington and that one thing he had learned was that he should never have won the Revolutionary War. But he did win because God had brought him great generals who had helped him. Then Ray stopped me, put his hands on my shoulders so that I had to look him directly in the eye, and delivered the initial answer to my prayer. “Anne, God will bring you generals.”

 

Deep in my heart, the burden was lifted. I knew God had heard my prayer and would bring me through. I assure you that I maintained a position of prayer in my heart while I continued to wait for the specific answers, but God’s peace that defies all practical logic flooded my heart and never left. I was greatly encouraged by the “insight and understanding” that God had heard my prayer and would indeed bring me through.

 

Immediately Encouraged by The Affirmation

Daniel too knew God would see him through. The very fact that Gabriel had been sent by God to give Daniel a message must have immediately relieved the burden that weighed so heavily on Daniel’s heart. Until that moment, Daniel would not have known for sure if he had interpreted Jeremiah’s prophecy accurately. He would not have known for sure if he had been praying appropriately. He would not have known without a doubt if anyone was listening or caring or heeding or moving in response to his prayer.

 

So not only must Gabriel’s message have relieved Daniel’s burden as it conveyed that God had heard, but it affirmed Daniel personally when Gabriel revealed, “Daniel . . . you are highly esteemed” (9:22–23). How those five words must have thrilled him. To know that God not only noticed Daniel, but that He knew Daniel by name. To know that God not only was moved by Daniel’s prayer, but that the God of the Universe—the Almighty Creator—the Jehovah of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob— the great I AM of Moses—the living God—held him in high esteem. What an amazing revelation for an old man, isolated in an upstairs room, enslaved in a foreign land, who had been pouring out his heart as he interceded with God for his nation and his people.

 

This affirmation is something for you and me to wrap our hearts and minds around as we consider praying the Daniel Prayer. If there was no other reward for prayer than earning Heaven’s high regard, wouldn’t that be enough? You and I are to live for God’s glory and His pleasure. Nothing more and nothing less. It’s possible to be despised by the world while at the very same time to be held in high esteem in Heaven. The opposite of that is also true. It’s possible to be held in high esteem on earth while being of no consequence at all in Heaven. Think about it. Which are you?

 

If you enter into the Daniel Prayer, seeking to move Heaven and change nations, you will be a person who is highly esteemed by God. But God will also bring into your life visible people who will affirm you and bless you. As I went through the months of turmoil and tumult in my ministry, God poured out His blessing on the rest of my ministry staff who rallied around me with prayer, love, and hard work. Our initiatives were all completed with excellence, to the glory of God! And my board of directors stood by with strong words of exhortation, encouragement, and unwavering support. One by one, God brought me His generals. New staff members who were not only incredibly qualified, but also had humble, servants’ hearts. My ministry thrived, and continues to thrive as we remain focused on Him, filled with His Spirit, and fired up to do the work He assigns us.

This devotional is drawn from The Daniel Prayer: Prayer That Moves Heaven and Changes Nations by Anne Graham Lotz. Used by permission

JUDGE NOT...

 

"Judge not" is not even the complete sentence.

The complete sentence, as Jesus uttered it, is "Judge not that you be not judged."

The explanation of the sentence comes next, "For in the way you judge, you will be judged; and by your standard of measure, it will be measured to you. Why do you look at the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ and look, the log is in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother’s eye!"

When you don't cherry pick, you soon discover that these words of Christ are actually a stern warning against hypocrisy.

Hypocrisy and self-righteousness are native to sinful human nature. In other words, we readily see faults in others and blame others, whilst failing to clearly see our own faults, or fairly attribute blame to ourselves.

We rush to lay judgement on others. We rush to justify ourselves. Hence, the speck and the log metaphor.

I might add that victim mentality exponentially increases your risk of doing this in an unbalanced way.

For the hypocrite - and there's a hypocrite in all of us - it will be a rude shock when we are held to our own standards, let alone God's.

This is why those who teach are sternly warned in scripture - they will be held to a higher standard. Every word they say will no doubt come back on them.

But does it mean we must not teach? Or measure things according to righteousness? Or discern truth? Or call out evil?

Jesus' very next sentence proves that was never what He meant. He says, "Do not give what is holy to dogs, and do not throw your pearls before pigs..."

Who are the pigs? The dogs? Is that not judgemental to draw such severe conclusions?

Indeed it does require judgement, but so does all wisdom.

Judgement is necessary, but the hypocrite will be exposed.

The true meaning of this statement is far more fearful to me than the false meaning so often attributed to it.

Everything I want to say, I apply first to myself... an exercise which has caused me, many times, to refrain from saying it.

One goal of the Christian life is to judge yourself harshly and others generously... because even when you do, you'll still be wrong about yourself.

 

Source:   MartynLies@martynioydiles

Tim Hawkins - On Turning 40, health food, and doctor visits

 

“Mom, can I sleep at Grandma's tonight?”

I heard in the car, this morning. When I managed to turn around, to see my child, it made me go back to the past, with just one sentence. She was no longer within my reach.

I travelled far. When did time go by and make us adults full of boring priorities? We fight every day, for something we're not even sure we really want. When in fact, grandma's house, is what everyone needs to be happy.

Grandma's house, is where the hands of the clock take a vacation with us and the minutes unhurriedly, go by.

Grandma's house is where a simple pasta and homemade bread seem to have different flavors, delicious.

Grandma's house is where an innocent afternoon, can last for an eternity of games and fantasies.

Grandma's house is where the cupboards hide old clothes and mysterious tools.

Grandma's house is where the closed boxes become chests of secret treasures, ready to be unveiled.

Grandma's house is where toys rarely come ready, they are invented on the spot.

Grandma's house, is where everything is mysteriously possible, magic happens and without worries.

Grandma's house is where we find the remains of our parents' childhood and the beginning of our lives.

Grandma's house, on the inside, is the address of our deepest affection, where everything is allowed.

That luxury no longer belongs to me - unfortunately - it will live with me, only in memories. Even so, if I could place an order now, any order of all orders in the world, I would order the same thing.

"Can I sleep at Grandma's tonight?"

~ Author unknown

Either Write something or Do something......

Is it me or is our culture going absolutely nuts? I think that anyone who keeps up with the news would agree with me. Before you look at the paper (website, journalistic entity app, etc.) today let me tell you what it boils down to…It’s worse than it was yesterday. It’s almost like everywhere you look people are trying to outdo each other on how to make a media impact. Why is that? I think that it all comes down to one word that we need to look at in the quote at the top of this post: worth. Almost anyone can write something, but is it worth reading? Most of us do things and try to let everyone know about it, but is it something that other people value enough to record for history? If we make a splash and do something that others will remember, is it beneficial to anyone? We are so saturated in social network posts and “news” articles that it has become almost impossible to find true significance in our world. We are always trying to keep others updated on why we are worth following and thus, why we are worth keeping around.

We all have a yearning to leave some kind of legacy. We express it through sharing funny pictures, sad stories, and the most personal of details. Sadly it seems that the only people that cut through the static are the mass shooters, celebrities competing for the best selfie, or individuals who seem to want to win a shouting match about whose point of view is the right one. Why do we give these people so much value that they are able to skew our worldview? Can we counter it or is our culture one that is so far gone that there is no hope?

I think that there is hope, but obviously we can’t look to the people at the top to take the wheel. 

Look at yourself first. 

Can we agree that your house is a reasonable place to start?

 Do you have any substance? 

Are you a person who is worth reading about? 

I’m not talking about 140 characters. Could someone write a book about your life that you would be willing to let others read? 

When you are gone and your digital profiles are disbanded will anyone remember your name? If they do, will your memory be honorable or shameful? I challenge you to make your life count. 

Check your beliefs and make sure that they are worthy. When you have those set make yourself the best that you can be. Read something that stimulates your mind, take notes. 

Build on your strengths, diminish your weaknesses. Be honorable, trustworthy, gracious, but above all be a fierce force for what is good. 

Before you click “Like” or “Retweet” make sure that whatever you are sharing has value and is indeed worth reading/viewing. And I ask that if you take a stand on a position that you make sure that it is intelligible and that you can defend it.

I implore you to leave something for others to use. Let it be a business for your family, a love letter to your wife, money to a charity, or your labor to help out a stranger. It can be anything tangible, just let it be more than a few words of rhetoric that will flutter away by tomorrow. I would ask that instead of “Liking” or sharing this article with someone else that you would heed ol’ Ben’s words and write one of your own. 

Take a risk and create something that will stir a passion in someone else to check their own positions. Let’s commit together to leave a respectable legacy. Let me tell you where I am going to start. I’ll begin at home with my family. My priority is to love, support, and raise them in a way that will ensure that they will be successful for generations and that we will be remembered in the best light possible. After that I’ll move on to something else.

I hope that this article is something worth reading. You can let me know when I have done something worth writing about.

Author: AnthonyT.J. Michelic 

A WRECKER OR A BUILDER?

As I watched them tear a building down
A gang of men in a busy town
With a ho-heave-ho, and a lusty yell
They swung a beam and the side wall fell

I asked the foreman, “Are these men skilled,
And the men you’d hire if you wanted to build?”
He gave a laugh and said, “No, indeed,
Just common labor is all I need.”

“I can easily wreck in a day or two,
What builders have taken years to do.”
And I thought to myself, as I went my way
Which of these roles have I tried to play'

Am I a builder who works with care,
Measuring life by rule and square?
Am I shaping my work to a well-made plan
Patiently doing the best I can'

Or am I a wrecker who walks to town
Content with the labor of tearing down?
“O Lord let my life and my labors be
That which will build for eternity!”

Author Charles Franklin Benvegar 

MONDAY QUOTES: Christian Quotes About Prayer

 

Christian Quotes About Prayer

Prayer fills man’s emptiness with God’s fullness.
— E. M. Bounds

 

The key is praying according to God’s will. To know His will we must know His thoughts. To know His thoughts we must saturate our minds with His word. Then we will begin to experience the authority of God in our prayers.
— Charles Henley

 

Not only does God command us to pray, He permits us to pray. Prayer is both a must and a may, an obligation and a gift.
— Ben Patterson

 

The greatest thing anyone can do for God and for man is to pray. It is not the only thing, but it is the chief thing.
— S. D. Gordon

Sunday Words of Encouragement PSALM 121

I lift up my eyes to the mountains — where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth. He will not let your foot slip — he who watches over you will not slumber; indeed, he who watches over Israel will neither slumber nor sleep. The Lord watches over you — the Lord is your shade at your right hand; the sun will not harm you by day, nor the moon by night. The Lord will keep you from all harm — he will watch over your life; the Lord will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore.                                (Psalm 121)

Sunday Thought: Part Three of Five - Pleading in Prayer

 

The Choice to be Fearless

Darius tossed and turned all night. He could not eat and he could not sleep. Early the next morning, Darius ran to the lions’ den, calling out, “‘Daniel, servant of the living God, has your God, whom you serve continually, been able to rescue you from the lions?’ Daniel answered, ‘O king, live forever! My God sent his angel, and he shut the mouths of the lions. They have not hurt me’” (6:20–22). The overjoyed Darius scooped Daniel up out of the den, then immediately executed the men who had hatched the plot. He then proceeded to issue a decree that everyone in his kingdom was to fear and reverence the God of Daniel. Listen to Darius’ testimony: “For he is the living God and he endures forever; his kingdom will not be destroyed, his dominion will never end” (6:26). God was glorified!

Which makes me wonder what my choices really reveal. When I pray, God, be glorified in my life, do I truly mean it? Am I willing to back up that request with choice after choice after choice to lay everything on the line...

reputation, position, education...
ministry, marriage, motives...
safety, success, strategy...
family, future, finances...
children, career, comfort...
dreams, desires, duties...
time, talents, treasures...
My whole life...
and trust it all to Him?

If you and I rarely exercise our faith, how can we be surprised when it’s too weak for anyone to notice? Too weak to move others to recognize and acknowledge that our God is God? Too weak to be contagious? Daniel’s choice to trust God repeatedly, regardless of how difficult or dangerous the situation was, impresses me that he wanted to serve a God who is God. If God was unable to come through for him—if He was unable to “push the wheelbarrow across the tightrope over Niagara Falls”—then He wasn’t a God worth knowing. Or serving. Or risking his life for.

But the truth was that Daniel’s God is God. With years of experience to back him up, he knew when he prayed that he was speaking to a living Person who would listen and respond to him. Again and again, as he had relied on God, God had been there for him. God had intervened miraculously in his circumstances and honored his trust in many ways.

But even more than the knowledge that God is real, Daniel was supremely confident that the living God of the universe was committed to him. He had established a personal, covenant relationship with the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. This confidence comes through clearly when he relates, “I prayed to the Lord my God . . .” (9:4). Daniel knew that God was his, and he was God’s. And it is this covenant relationship with God that is the bedrock of the Daniel Prayer. There was not a shred of doubt in Daniel’s mind that God would hear his prayer. And God would answer.

Confident Faith in God’s Covenant

Daniel would have entered into a covenant with God as a result of growing up a Jewish boy. The covenant was claimed by his parents, who would have had him circumcised on the eighth day of his life as an outward sign of it. Daniel’s willing participation in the sacrificial system and the ceremonies in the temple further solidified his relationship with God.

Even in his old age, his memories of the temple sacrifices were precious to him because his participation had been heartfelt, not just ritualistic or traditional (9:21). He knew the living God was his God. When God had come through for him when he had made his choices again and again to trust Him completely under great pressure and risk to himself, he was increasingly confident that God claimed him also.

A covenant relationship with God is a vitally important necessity in prayer. While God can hear and answer any prayer He chooses, when you and I come to Him in a covenant relationship, we are guaranteed He will listen to us and will answer us. So, before beginning the actual words of the Daniel Prayer, it’s to our benefit to determine if we are in a covenant relationship with God. Are you? I am.

This devotional is drawn from The Daniel Prayer: Prayer That Moves Heaven and Changes Nations by Anne Graham Lotz. Used by permission

Let's try to eliminate the afters …

 I did not write this - but WOW does it speak to my heart!!!  Worth the read.

Barely the day started and... it's already six in the evening.

Barely arrived on Monday and it's already Friday.
... and the month is already over.
... and the year is almost over.
... and already 40, 50 or 60 years of our lives have passed.
... and we realize that we lost our parents, friends.
and we realize it's too late to go back...

So... Let's try, despite everything, to enjoy the remaining time...
Let's keep looking for activities that we like...
Let's put some color in our grey...
Let's smile at the little things in life that put balm in our hearts.

And despite everything, we must continue to enjoy with serenity this time we have left. Let's try to eliminate the afters …
I'm doing it after...
I'll say after...
I'll think about it after...

We leave everything for later like ′′ after ′′ is ours.
Because what we don't understand is that:
Afterwards, the coffee gets cold...
afterwards, priorities change...
Afterwards, the charm is broken...
afterwards, health passes...
Afterwards, the kids grow up...
Afterwards parents get old...
Afterwards, promises are forgotten...
afterwards, the day becomes the night...
afterwards life ends...

And then it's often too late....
So... Let's leave nothing for later...

Because still waiting see you later, we can lose the best moments,
the best experiences,
best friends,
the best family... 

The day is today... The moment is now...

We are no longer at the age where we can afford to postpone what needs to be done right away.

So let's see if you have time to read this message and then share it.
Or maybe you'll leave it for... ′′ later "...

And you'll never share it....