Happy Monday!

Busy day. Because of the rain Bruce and I were able to spend the day together. We took Luther to the vet for shots. According to the Dr. at Banfield, he is perfect.

Then I had a difficult decision to make about classes this fall. I received an email from my professor for my Dead Sea Scrolls class. I discovered the class only had two students. I was a little nervous about the class not making so when we went to Brite I spoke with the dean of student affairs he offered me to option of dropping the class and enrolling for another. The only slight problem with this class is that I am the first one on the waiting list. But, the dean assures me with 99.9% assurance that I will get in and that this will not be a problem.

Dinner tonight at home with Bruce and a movie on the couch. It was a good day. Thanks be to God.

Prayer: Most loving and kind Lord thank You for the seemingly ordinary blessings of the day. Your unfailing love is the comfort I need and it shows up so often in Bruce. Thank You for living in Bruce and allowing him to be the vessel of Your love, Lord. The words of Jeremiah say, “Yes, I have loved you with an everlasting love, therefore with loving kindness I have drawn you.” Thank you LORD for the blessing of being in Your presence today. In Jesus name, I pray. Amen.

“May your unfailing love be my comfort, according to your promise to your servant.”

Psalm 119: 76

The unfailing Love of God is our comfort. God’s love and comfort is dependable, In order for us to receive the full benefit of this love and comfort we must trust God with all of our heart. When we experience the blessing of God’s love and comfort we are empowered and strengthened to do what God has calls us to do.  It is in the receiving of these blessings that we are prepared to following God’s will for our lives.

My meditation tonight offers this suggestion to help receive this blessing. The suggestion is to get into God’s word and memorize favored passages of scripture that assure us of God’s Love that are constant reminders that God loves us with an everlasting love.

Take joy in this journey of blessings remembering that hope does not disappoint. Wear comfortable shoes, give thanks with a grateful heart, let us cast our cares upon the Lord and get some sleep. God is up all night anyway and there is no use in all of us being awake. Love you all, Bruce and Gaylene.

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.

Blessed Sunday to you all!

It has been a great day. I preached at Hurst Christian Church, my wonderful husband took me to lunch and I cleaned out a closet! Then, Bruce and I (but mostly Bruce) did the final edit on my final paper for the summer and SENT IT OFF!!!!! WOW!! I have a couple of other projects to complete before classes begin in August. 

Geni sent wonderful pictures of her and Cody on the beach and everyone looks like they are having a really great time.

Prayer: Loving Lord, full of kindness and grace, tonight let us enter Your gates with thanksgiving and Your courts with praise. Our hearts are thankful for a day set aside for worship and praise to You. Thank you for prayers, Your Word, songs, preaching and fellowship with a community who loves You and each other. In Jesus name, I pray. Amen.

“Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name. For the LORD is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations.”

Psalm 100: 4-5

When our hearts are thankful they are filled with joy. When we forget to be thankful and forget to offer the sacrifice of praise then our souls suffer. Sometimes we forget to receive the blessings from God with gratitude. Just like any new behavior it has to be practiced.

It is easy to be thankful for really obvious blessings, but sometimes difficult to be grateful for situations we would have never chosen such as…a difficult child, or tension in a marriage or home, health issues or employment.  The author of my meditation calls this “counterintuitive thankfulness.” This type of thankfulness is only possible when we trust God at the deepest level. It also takes practice and self-discipline to be able to honestly be grateful when our circumstances feel just the opposite. It is a lesson I am trying very much to learn.

So my friends, let us work together. I will pray for you and you pray for me that we will work on coming into the Presence of God with Thanksgiving persistently when we receive blessings that make us glad and especially when it doesn’t look like a blessing we would have chosen so that God can take this situation and turn it into victory.

Take joy in the journey remembering that hope does not disappoint. Wear comfortable shoes, pray with a heart filled with gratitude, let us cast our cares on the Lord and get some sleep. God is up all night anyway so there is no need for all of us to be awake. Love you all, Bruce and Gaylene.

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.

Happy Saturday!

Geni and crew safely made it to Florida. She sent a beautiful picture from Biloxi this morning and the beach right outside their hotel. No pictures from Destin yet.  She is asking for prayer for the weather. According to the weatherman it is supposed to rain the whole time they are there. No fun!  

Pray for good weather for these folks. This trip has been planned for over two years. It would be so sad if all of their plans got soaked! 

Prayer:  Lord, thank you for Your unfailing love. In You all things hold together. When I empty my heart of all things not of You then there is more of You in it and Your leading and voice are easier to hear and follow. My faith is strong even when sometimes I am sad. Help me to be thankful when it is not easy and my connection to You will be so much stronger. Forgive me when I let the enemy get inside. Remind me to seek Your face. Lord, in Your mercy, hear this prayer. Amen.

“Let the morning bring me word of your unfailing love, for I have put my trust in you. Show me the way I should go, for to you I lift up my soul.”

Psalm 143: 8

God is our Creator and Savior and every breath we take is a gift from God. It is only right and proper that each day we wake up thinking of God in thankfulness no matter how we are feeling. Our lives often feel pulled in so many directions. Let our priorities be to spend time with God as the most important thing we do each day. This practice helps us to stay in communication with our Creator.  The more we do this the more God can show us the way we should go.

Take joy in the journey remembering that hope does not disappoint. Wear comfortable shoes, give thanks with a heart filled with gratitude, let us cast our cares on the Lord and get some sleep.  God is up all night anyway so there is no reason for all of us to be awake too. Love you all, Bruce and Gaylene.

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.

Prayer request: Please pray for me and the congregation in Hurst as I bring the Word and reflection to them tomorrow. Thanks. gc