Happy Tuesday!! 

The spring semester for 2012 is officially over.  All finals have been turned in and sermons have been delivered.  My next class will begin on May 21.  It is through the Jewish Studies program.  It is on Biblical Storytellers, Sages and Musicians.  I am very excited about this class.  It is a five day intensive study. 

Tomorrow I will begin cleaning the dining room so it will look less like a grad student’s office and more like a dining room.  Thank you for all of your prayers during this semester.  It had a bit of a tough start with Mom passing at the end of the first week and me missing an entire week of classes.  But so far, I have earned an A in Preaching, and a B in the Short Term Pastoral counseling class I took in early January. 

Travis travelled to Austin with his new manager today for training to be an assistant manager.  I am not sure when he will begin at his new store, but I will keep you posted.  Please offer a prayer for him to continue to be the best manager he can be.

Prayer:  “Father, today I will be confronted by the Enemy of my soul. He will attempt to make me afraid, rendering me ineffective in Your service.  Help me to remember You are watching over me, keeping me by Your grace.  Remind me that Your eyes are upon me.  Cause me to reflect on the truth that You are enough for every situation and that You are bigger than any opposition I can encounter.  Thank You for being my heavenly Father.  Amen.”

“For the eyes of the LORD are on the righteous, and his ears are open to their prayers; but the face of the LORD is against those who do evil.”

1 Peter 3: 12

Fear is the greatest weapon Satan can use against us as believers.  Today we had a WiFi problem at home.  My papers for school are to be emailed to the professor.  I emailed a paper due on Monday by 12:00 (noon).  It was emailed at 12: 25 AM in plenty of time for the professor to receive it.  I discovered none of my forwards were reaching their destination.  A colleague of mine who lives in San Antonio emailed a paper for me to print as our professor wanted both paper and email copies.  After receiving the paper I emailed it to Bruce from the dining room into the office only to discover it took 17 minutes for it to arrive in his email. 

Now I am beginning to panic.  Our papers were due at 3:00 PM and the rule is late papers are not accepted and I still had to travel to Fort Worth to deliver the paper. So we put the paper on a flashdrive only to discover that the printer went offline and did not work for a little while.  Now I am really beginning to panic and time is passing really quickly.  I am walking around the house saying, “Satan, get out of my house. You will not win the battle.”  Paper printed and I am off.  Once I no longer gave Satan authority over the situation I calmed down.  I was so afraid of being late with the papers that I could no longer think clearly.  Satan is the author of confusion, doubt and fear.  None of these words are in God’s vocabulary. 

So I took a breath and remembered some things. 

First, in this verse, Peter tells us the LORD is always watching over the righteous.  We have received God’s righteousness in Jesus Christ’s crucifixion and resurrection. As our loving Father, God is always watching us and knows our situation.  When we feel alone we can be sure God is there and sees us in love. 

Second, the LORD is always ready to hear our prayers.  I asked God to remove Satan from my house and the situation. God’s ears are always open to us inviting us to pray, delighting in hearing and answering our prayers.

Third, the LORD is against those who do evil, especially Satan.  The enemies that attack us are God’s enemies.  These enemies can do no more than God will allow and are tools in His hands to mold us into the image of Jesus. 

So my friends, remember to pray and…Fear not!

Take joy in the journey.  Wear comfortable shoes.  Sleep well, get some rest and let God stay awake and watch over you tonight.  Count your blessings and say your prayers.  Love you all so very much, Bruce, Gaylene, Geni and Travis.

Gcapplenotes@aol.com     

I am not moved by what I see. I am not moved by what I feel. I am only moved by what I believe and I believe God.