April 8, 2018

Father God,

You could have just shrugged, turned away, and started over somewhere else.
You could have said 'I told you so. Serves you right.'
You could have said 'you wouldn't listen, so figure it out on your own.'
You could have invoked Your right to be angry.
You could have said 'it's not worth it--you're not worth it.'

But instead You said I was worth it. On every. single. step to Calvary.

Thank You. It motivates us to love You back, and it teaches us how to care for others. 

At this time when we market all kinds of love, help us to understand Yours. 

We envision every heart shape around us broken, Lord. Tattered, torn hearts. Thank You for loving us so much You were willing to let it break Your heart. Not an ornamental arrow through it, but a spear pierced all the way through.

Teach us to love like that, Lord Jesus. Teach us that sacrifice--not the passive, submissive sacrifice. Teach us to be intentionally, aggressively sacrificial. 

To pull that cross, and take every step with You. 

Starting with the ones we love--our husbands. Out of gratitude for how You have treated us, help us to show our men and our children that same outpouring.

All to Jesus I surrender
All to Him I freely give
I will always serve and trust Him
In His presence daily live

I surrender all
I surrender all
All to Him my precious Savior
I surrender all.

All to Jesus, I surrender;
Lord, I give myself to Thee;

Fill me with Thy love and power;

Let Thy blessing fall on me.

Lord Jesus we give You our right to be angry. Our need to be respected. Our importance that prohibits patience. Our lack of worth that makes us put down others. Our lack of long-suffering.

We pray for our military wives. We bring to You the many things we are concerned with--our marriages, our children, homes that need rented, upcoming moves, illnesses, our parents' health, our tyrannical schedules. We surrender them all to You. Let Your blessing fall on them.

Please work through us Lord--in our volunteer efforts, our PWOCs and chapels, in our social circles.

Lord we need a flood of Your love in this land, in our world. We pray this mighty tide overtake our hurting warriors, banishing depression and suicide and anger. May these people who have shown such sacrifice for others be shown that love at home. May Your grace abound in their homes.

Lord, there's planes flying over the Pacific, bringing our soldiers home. Please keep them safe. There's planes flying over the Atlantic, and the Middle East, be with them now. And please be with the ships on those blue waters, the soldiers scrambling through the mud.

In Jesus' precious name,

Amen.

*I Surrender All

CCLI#7051633

Written By Judson W. VanDeVenter

April 1, 2018

Lord Jesus
Conquerer over sin and death,

With joy we proclaim He is risen! 
I don't have to sit hopelessly in my shame
I don't have to work constantly to make things right
I don't have to grovel and beg, but only receive
I don't have to live by the sword, die by the sword
I don't have to take the punishment I so richly deserve
He is risen indeed!

He is risen!
I don't have to continue to do the things I hate
I don't have to respond the same way, with the same old habits
A lifeline has been thrown to me to pull me out of the whirlpool
You have forgiven me
He is risen indeed!

He is risen!
And I can rest in You
I don't have to hold the grudge and make others pay
I don't have to figure out the perfect revenge
I don't have to make others sorry
I don't have to manipulate, control, make sure I'm winning
You have forgiven, and I can forgive
He is risen indeed!

He is risen!
I don't have to live so very alone
I don't have to fear a distant, holy God
I don't have to handle things myself
I can crawl up into my Daddy's lap
I can see His face, learn His ways, access His power
I am not an expendable pawn, a toy to be played with
My life is not meaningless coincidences, sound and fury, signifying nothing
I am loved
I am ransomed
I am saved
He is risen indeed!

He is risen!
I have hope, no matter what happens
Death isn't the end--it's the beginning
I will get to see my Jesus face to face
I will be with the ones I love
Every tear will be dried, every pain gone
I will live forever
with You
He is risen indeed!

He is risen!
Lord may this truth be real to our military today--from someone's baby boy starting boot camp to the hardened sergeant in Afghanistan to the hurting veteran staring out the window. Don't let their hearts be at rest until they find You.
May this truth be real to our military families--from the young bride far from home, to the mother of five watching the skies, to the kids of the veteran who can't control his temper.
Lord please unleash revival in our ranks. May the true battle become clear. May suicide, pride, anger, selfishness be defeated.

We pray for protection around our military this week, in their training, in their flights, in their patrols. Thank You, Lord Jesus, that we can trust in You no matter what happens.

And we pray for our families this week. Lord, may grace and love abound. Teach us to forgive. Be with those who are struggling so hard. May we all live like we believe "He is risen!"

How awesome that we can pray to You. Thank You for Your sacrifice. Thank You for Your love.
He is risen indeed!

March 25, 2018

The concept for today's prayer came from a worship pastor, but I can't  find the source... So, shameless plagiarism here. Also, I want to join the 'hardest prayers of a mother' from the blog site: 

http://wearethatfamily.com/2015/03/the-hard-prayers-of-a-mother/

Lord Jesus, in Holy Week--

we realize how un-holy our lives are.

Help us to take up our cross

and follow You on the road to Golgotha--

the place of the skull

the place of death

where selves die

As we realize how pathetically weak we are

we see how amazingly strong You are.

Lord Jesus,

I, my people, our warriors, our country,

we have ran away from You--

"My feet were nailed for you"

Our hands--we've used them in sin

we've chosen not to help

we've hurt people in our anger

"My hands were pierced for you"

We've turned our back on You

we've chosen our own rules

we've chosen to believe our own lies to avoid bowing to You

"My back was whipped to stripes for you"

Lord, we can hardly stay focused for more than 5 minutes on You

our minds wander 

chasing after the winds of our hearts

"My head bore a crown of thorns for you"

We don't love You enough Lord

our hearts are far away

we try to protect them in comfort

"My heart was pierced for you"

Thank You Jesus 

Thank You

Thank You for loving us so much

Help us to bear our crosses

to love You enough to sacrifice

to value You more than anything

even if it hurts

Lord break our wills, 

break our hearts

break our pride and self-sufficiency

whatever it takes to make us see

for You are worth everything--

We pray this for ourselves

for our husbands

with some fear, we pray this for our children

You've given us the strongest military in the world

but don't let us lose our soul

do what You must to bring our soldiers to You.

Move amongst our deployed and those at home in this time.

For those that are broken, for our veterans, we pray You will heal them

May they find true rest and comfort in You

not drugs, or meds, or alcohol, or relationships or adrenaline or or or

May our chaplains and chapels and our Christian soldiers be joyous guiding lights, including the Chief of Chaplains' office.

Out of a deeper understanding of Your sacrifice, grow our love for You.

Lead on Lord--through the PCSs, the illnesses, the child raising, the career choices, the daily choices of how to live these lives You have given us--and to live them abundantly!

Amen!

March 18, 2018

Click here to sing with Selah today:

Before the throne of God above
I have a strong and perfect plea
A great High Priest whose name is love
Who ever lives and pleads for me
My name is graven on His hands
My name is written on His heart
I know that while in heav’n He stands
No tongue can bid me thence depart
No tongue can bid me thence depart

Nothing can keep us from You Lord. No height, no depth, no evil attack, no loneliness, no feelings...
And also for our children. Lord, Your arm is not too short to reach to college, to the hospital, to the lonely post, to the pressured school, to the negative locker room. Lord, we pray our children's names are written on Your heart, graven on Your hands.

VERSE 2
When Satan tempts me to despair
And tells me of the guilt within
Upward I look and see Him there
Who made an end of all my sin
Because the sinless Savior died
My sinful soul is counted free
For God the Just is satisfied
To look on Him and pardon me
To look on Him and pardon me

How can we ever thank You enough Lord, for giving Your Son to take the punishment our sons deserved? Thank You Lord for a love that reaches generations.
Forgive us when we doubt that love. A love like that can be trusted, especially with our children. Help us to give them to You, over and over and over.

VERSE 3
Behold Him there, the risen Lamb
My perfect, spotless Righteousness
The great unchangeable I AM
The King of glory and of grace
One with Himself, I cannot die
My soul is purchased by His blood
My life is hid with Christ on high
With Christ my Savior and my God
With Christ my Savior and my God

Lord, today, will You please be very real to our kids? Soften their heart, open their souls; may they see You.

We pray for the babies in the womb--the potential of life from the joy of love. Please keep them safe.
Please help the crisis pregnancy centers--meet their needs. May they have many workers for the harvest.
We pray for the little ones busy with life. Please keep them safe and give their parents strength.
We pray for our school kids. Lord, please teach them the right attitude to do their best without being stressed. May their teachers be inspiring.
We pray for our kids who are not well. Lord, we ask for healing. But we also ask that they would learn well the lessons of adversity.
We pray for our high schoolers as they discern Your path for their future. May they be more focused on You than their shortcomings, more on Your work than the hardships. May they be a generation of joyful Christians.
We pray for our ones who are off to school and the military and other adventures. May their confidence be in You.
We pray for the future spouses of our kids. May our children grow to be the right person for their marriages.We pray for protection from despair, depression, drugs... 
We pray that You would hold the hearts of the children of the deployed very close.
We pray for the youth culture of our military posts. Lord, please help them to find meaning and purpose in You. We ask that the Christians would be shining lights for You. We pray against the spiritual forces there. Lord, please reign victorious over our communities.

Most of all, may their names be written on Your heart.

Help us to remember we are all loved by You, and help us to love each other.
Please be with our deployed, and our veterans. Lord, please protect them from all thoughts of suicide.
We pray for our leaders, from the Commander in Chief and Secretary of Defense, to the Pentagon and the Chief of Chaplains office.

We pray because we know You are a loving Father. Thank You Thank You Thank You.

Before the Throne
CCLI #7051633
Written by Charitie Lees Bancroft
Performed by Selah, 2009 Daywind Music Group

March 11, 2018

God of the Heavenly Armies,
As our soldiers climb mountains in Afghanistan,
kick in doors in Iraq,
march on Korean soil,
patrol the streets in Somalia
And everywhere fight against the lies

As our airmen climb into cockpits
fly into so much blue
and our sailors float on so much blue
in the Mediterranean
the Sea of Japan
the Arabian Sea
And as our Coasties search the grey to save the one fisherman

Lord may they feel Your presence.
As they walk away from their families--
step forward, willing to sacrifice--
may they understand Your sacrifice,
Your walk to death on the cross.

When our warriors try to run to the end of the world to escape You
when they hide behind the tough guy mask
when they find themselves completely alone while surrounded with peers
when they are drowning in anger and pride and the lies they've been told
and the lies they tell themselves
Lord, please chase them down.
Please do whatever is necessary to breakdown their self-reliance.
Turn their faces and their hearts to You.

We pray for the baby-faced gate guard
the cadet pouring over books
the anger-spitting captain
the thoughtful general
Father, bring revival! May Your Spirit be unleashed throughout our military.
And through us, may we spread Your Word to the world.

Lord, please help the deployed, and their families, grow in You.
Please help the young recruit learn his/her skill.
Please bring peace to the contentious office, understanding to the stressed motor pool.
May the old veteran find peace in You.
And may all be kept from the spirit of suicide.

As we see the courage, the determination, the strength of our forces in their missions,
we remember You.
Thank You for leaving Your home for our benefit.
Thank You for fighting with us in the trenches.
Thank You for taking those steps to the cross.
Thank You for taking our place.
Thank You for Your "overwhelming, never-ending, reckless love."
May all of our warriors know it today.

Click here to sing "Reckless Love" with Corey Asbury