Month: October 2017

“But already there is joy enough in the little finger of a great saint such as yonder lady to waken all the dead things of the universe into life.”

Like Sarah Smith in CS Lewis’s The Great Divorce, most have never heard of my friend Alita. But fame in heaven is different from fame on earth, so I love imagining her splendor as she approaches the throne of God.  Alita loved God so vey, very well; it leaked out in the beauty of her smile, the warmth of her presence, the love she showed all those around her.  Can you imagine this love perfected in heaven, stripped of illness and earthly limitations?

Many people inspire in many different ways, but Alita- here is a woman who inspires in the most holy way possible.  Looking at her life, we all know.

If you want to be like Alita, the only way get there is to love God and seek him with all your heart.

Alita’s life said, “don’t look at me, look at my Heavenly Father! There is laughter and joy, suffering and pain and he is here through it all.  He is the one who strengthens, sustains, fills our lives with beauty. Love him, and you will love like him.” And so like Lewis’s Sarah, we were all drawn to her as she pointed us to Christ.

Father, I pray we can love you so deeply, seek you so full-heartedly that your love leaks out of us to touch all those around us.  I pray that we point others to you as we are filled with your joy. #prayersformychildren

Today’s prayer is for the hard times all the kids I love will face.

No mom, including this one, wants to really talk about it, but history says our kids are likely to face great heartache and struggle.  Rejection, employment uncertainty, cancer, infertility, divorce, financial strain.  We don’t know what it is, but we do know our kids will need to be strong, and they will need each other. They’re going to have to endure- just like every generation before.

The only real question is, will they endure and prevail in the strength and joy of Christ, or will they be defeated as they try to live life on their own?

I’ve always prayed that my kids would have and be good friends- that they will love and point each other to Christ. I would have to say that God has answered this prayer in powerful ways with each of my own kids, and I will always be deeply grateful. My prayers are for these beautiful souls.

Father in heaven, fill my kids and their friends with knowledge of your will. I pray, Father, that they will be wise, understanding how you work so that they can walk with you in this life, knowing the joy of effectively using the amazing gifts you have given them. Strengthen them- and may they strengthen each other- so that they will have endurance and patience leading to joy in whatever circumstances their lives will bring. – Colossians 1:9-15 #prayersformychildren #friendshipprayersfromColossians

You have a beautiful faith in Jesus; the word of the truth is bearing fruit in you as you love others in the Spirit, and I am so deeply, deeply thankful for you, my children.

We have taught about the grace of God since you were born. We have prayed for you, for your friends, for your future spouses since you were conceived- that you would know and love our Father in heaven, and that his Spirit would grow in you. I am not confused; you are no more perfect in your faith than I am, but I do see each of you responding to the power of the gospel, the life of God’s Spirit in you, and I pray with thankfulness daily.

We are in a period of new relationships- new schools, new challenges and opportunities- and I am in equal parts terrified and excited. Friends matter so very much; are you being a good friend? Are you choosing Jesus disciples to be closest to you? Are you bold and loving, kind and truthful? Are you Spirit-led in your texts, your social media, your lunchroom conversations?

In the opening of Colossians Paul joyfully greets the Christians because of the faith, love and hope they exhibit, the evidence of the Spirit in them. And the evidence he is so excited about is this- love, in the Spirit.

Father, I thank you again me again not just for my four, but for the many Spirit-filled kids and teens whose paths I’ve crossed. Thank you for their faith, love, and hope. I pray, Father, that each of these beautiful souls would have friends to love who love faithfully, through the fun times as well as the difficult. I pray our love for each other in the Spirit would grow in power, joy, and strength through our hope in Jesus. #prayersformychildren #friendshipprayersfromColossians

I’ve heard an old man say this is the commandment that is impossible to keep (at least, I heard him say it as I listened to the audio version of Gilead by Marilynne Robinson- highly recommend).

I don’t know- is that universally true? I’ll have to do some more self- examination on this one because I feel like I struggle with other commands more than this one.

Self-examination- this is actually the point of my prayer today, as we wind down the ancient wisdom of the Ten Commandments.  Children whom I love, take the time to examine your thoughts, your motives, your inner dialogue.  God has drawn for us a rough outline of the ways we can separate ourselves from him, and when we tolerate a little distance then there are only only two options.

Repentance, or a widening of the gap between us and God

And the gap never stays empty; it’s where the damage of our sin accumulates. We know God’s grace removes our guilt completely, but sometimes there are consequences that remain.  Habits that we have to overcome, relationships that have to be set right, actions that others simply have to forgive because we can’t undo them.

Listen to the voice of experience, friends.  The sooner you recognize your sin and repent, the less you damage yourself and the ones you love.  The more you allow God’s Spirit to get ahold of you and exponentially multiply your gifts so that you become the mighty warriors you are each capable of becoming- by God’s power.

Father, show us our sin. If it is wanting what another has, Father, grow in us the gift of contentment. I pray that all of us would turn our hearts to you in love and trust, repenting of the ways we allow distance to grow between us. I pray we would nurture the power of your Spirit in our souls so that we look more like you every day.  Thank you for the grace of forgiveness so freely given through your sacrificial love.  #prayersformychildren