Happy Thursday! 

WOW!  What a day!  A classmate and I presented our research on Grief and Loss as experienced by prison families; families who are supporting a loved one who is incarcerated.  I think our professor was pretty impressed because her comments and grade were in my email by the time I got back from lunch.  My colleague and I got an A on the presentation. 

Two major events in the life of Brite Divinity School today; first the Brite Spring Awards Banquet and worship and later the dedication of the new Brite Divinity School Bldg.  The new building is named the Harrison Building and it is high tech to the max with several classrooms and other conference rooms with a special study room.  The building even has a very cool balcony and a beautiful plaza with a meditation garden.  Really beautiful!

Prayer:  “Dear Lord, on this day, I will practice what God’s Word says to me.  I will follow Your will and Your Word.  Give me the power to do that as I our out my heart to You.  In Jesus’ name. Amen.”

Jeremiah 29: 12 “Then you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you.”

We have spoken this week about prayer.  Tonight my meditation speaks inspiring words about praying in the book of Jeremiah.  I am going to share the words of the meditation with you concerning prayer.

“Knowing that God will do what is best for you, granting to you His future and hope for you.  He provides for you the privilege to call upon Him.  Yes, prayer becomes the channel and experience where you can cry unto God with your all, entering into His presence in Jesus’ name and talk to Him. (Here is my favorite sentence) Just think, you who are limited enter into the presence of the unlimited and the result is that he provides you an unlimited life!!”

We are granted permission to speak to God and God listening to us.  God listens to our burdens, visions and dreams and even our whining and complaining!  We serve this awesome God who listens to us all of the time.  Even when we cannot get someone such as a friend, a pastor, family member to listen to our cries, God is always there to listen to us.  We can go to God at anytime, lay down our burdens and God will ALWAYS be there to listen.  Praise God!

Take joy in the journey.  Wear comfortable shoes.  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.

Happy Wednesday! 

Tomorrow is my last class day for this semester.  One of my classmates and I will present our final project to the class in Grief and Loss.  The topic is Grief and Loss as it Effects Prison Families.  Please offer a prayer for us that we present our findings to the class well.  Following this class is the annual Brite Spring Banquet. Then, beginning at 5:00 there will be a special chapel service followed by the dedication and celebration of the new Brite Building.  What an amazing day!!

Prayer:  “Good morning, Lord. Speak to me today.  Your servant is listening.  My heart is open and my ears are ready to hear You today.  Give me the power to not only hear You but also obey You. In Jesus’ name. Amen.”

Mark 11: 24 “Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them.”

There are no boundaries in prayer.  God is able to do anything, anywhere and at anytime because He is who He says He is and He can do whatever He says He can do.  There are no bounds on our requests made to God.  There is no one like the living God.  He will answer our prayers by His own will and authority.  Even though He is so pleased that we are becoming dependant on Him in our prayers and calling upon Him, God still goes by His Word and does what is best for us. 

Trust is such an important part of our prayers to God.  When we trust God with our prayers we are surrendering our burdens and concerns to His love and care, trusting that God will do what is best out of His love for us.  Because God already sees us all the way into eternity we must trust Him in all things, believing that we will receive answers with a confident heart!  (read that last sentence out loud  again.)

Sing with me, “There is none like You.  No one else knows my heart like You do.  I could search for all eternity long and there is none like You.”  I give thanks that God did not grant me everything for which I have ever asked.  Those would have been such bad deals.  God loves me enough to give me all that I need and some of what I want by His design and good purpose. 

So my friends…find some time and pray each day giving thanks for every good and perfect gift, surrendering your burdens and worries, trusting that God will do all that is best for we who are the pinnacle of His creation. 

Take joy in the journey.  Wear comfortable shoes.  Count your blessings and say your prayers.  Love you all, 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.

Happy Tuesday! 

Today was my final preaching class and my final class in Psalms. The final class in Psalms was entirely focused on prayer.  It was such a wonderful way to close out such a great semester.  I have loved all three classes and learned so very much.  In all three classes I have been able to put new found knowledge to use. 

The next week is going to be busy. I have two papers left to write; one in Psalms and one in Grief and Loss.  I will have seven hours on a train on Friday and a return trip of seven hours on Sunday and will hopefully get some writing done.  I will be riding the train to San Antonio to perform the wedding for our nephew and his fiancé.  The wedding is on Saturday at the Japanese Tea Gardens.  I will get to see Carme and Dave.   

Prayer:  “Dear Lord, I bless You on this morning for being with me all the time.  I thank You that whether I am on the mountaintop or in the valley.  You are there.  I pray this morning that I will live out my faith today.  I pray my life will be known as a living testimony for You.  May I be able to comprehend the privileges afforded to me by You. Amen.”

1 Thessalonians 5: 17, 18  “Pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.”

My favorite moment in the Kairos Weekend is when we go into the prison for closing.  The free world folks come into the gym followed by the residents and the inside the team who sit across the gym.  The free world people and the residents are all wearing large cardstock nametags with print large enough to see across the room.  Each of the support staff has been praying for one or two of the residents by name throughout the weekend.  The residents have been praying for each of the support staff during the weekend.  When the residents enter the gym they immediately begin to look for the name of their prayer partner.  Each of the support staff looks for their partner(s) as well.  It is such a touching moment filled with emotion for both groups.

It is such a tender moment when the residents place a name with the face of the one who has been praying for them for several days.  They are amazed that someone would pray for them without knowing who they are or even care what they have done.  The residents are children of God and are in just as much in need of the hope found in prayer as we who live in the free world. 

All who believe can come to God at anytime for anything.  For all of us it is such a joyful privilege of being in communion with God.  We can come to God with a thankful heart. Going to God with a thankful heart helps all of us no matter where we live and whatever our circumstances to live each day in Jesus name. 

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.

Take joy in the journey.  Wear comfortable shoes.  Count your blessings and say your prayers.  Love you all, Bruce, Gaylene, Geni and Travis.

Happy Monday! 

I have so missed writing these past few days, but I felt that being awake when I write was a must and so I am awake this evening.  (Ha Ha!)  The weekend spent in the Kairos Prison Ministry was just amazing and exhausting.  I loved being the chaplain and preparing chapel services throughout  each day.  

Being present as God worked through each one as they served the 42 residents was a privilege.  At closing as we (the support staff) heard and witnessed how God  worked in the lives of the residents was so touching.  My favorite part of closing is when we, the freeworld people, walk into that gym wearing our large name tags and the residents search each one of us trying to find which one of us was their prayer partner throughout the weekend.  We do not get to have physical contact with these men, but the recognition in their eyes is enough to melt your heart.

Prayer:  Father, this week is your week.  Speak truth and hope into my life.  Give me ears to hear You speak.  Grand me discipline to open Your Word in order to listen to Your Voice.  Whatever is before me, give me what I need at that moment.  Even now, I listen to You.  May You alone be praised. Amen.

James 5: 13, 14 Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray.  Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing psalms.  Is anyone among you sick?  Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord.

The best prayer times occur when we talk to God and listen to what God has to say.  When something comes up, talk to God about it and upon the authority of God’s Word, pray for guidance and God’s will to act on your behalf.  When you are sick call your pastor or a spiritual leader to pray over you .  Prayer should be our first choice and not our last. 

Each of us is going to have needs today and our pride will say “You can work this out without any help from God.” Let us consider God’s way and talk to God about it right now and let God speak promise into your day.  When we come to God first thing in the morning,  the Holy Spirit will do wonderful things in our lives.  God will bring peace and give us confidence that He is with us. 

Take joy in the journey praying as you travel.  Wear comfortable shoes.  Count your blessings and say your prayers.  Love you all, 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.

Prayer:  Please pray for little Tatum.  She received her chemotherapy treatment and it is such powerful medicine that it has burned through her tender skin leaving her burned and blistered.  She is so very brave saying that it does not hurt.  Thanks and peace, gc

Happy Wednesday! 

What a wonderful Day!  We are in the midst of a Kairos Prison Ministry Weekend.  Bruce is the leader for the weekend. He and a strong team carry the gospel to those 42 residents whom God has set apart for these few days to hear the gospel and carry it out from there to the other residents. It is not the intention of Kairos to get these folks out of prison, but to help then live a life of hope while inside. 

Prayer:  “LORD, you have brought us to this place to do Your will in proclaiming Your Word.  May we each be receptive and attentive to the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.”

Today in one of the Chapel times on the support team, we talked about intercessory prayer.  I likened intercessory prayer to lawyers and judges.  We hire lawyers not because they know the law.  We hire lawyers because they know how to talk to judges.  Lawyers communicate our intentions to a judge in language they each understand.  The same is true about praying intercessory prayers through the Holy Spirit.  I would never presume to speak the heavenly language of God, but when we pray to God through the power of the Holy Spirit, the Holy Spirit speaks to God in holy language making our desires and needs known to God.  The Holy Spirit intercedes for us to plead our case.  This kind of prayer is the greatest tool against the enemy we have against the evil one.

As prayer warriors we are praying intercessory prayers for the residents, the team inside and the support staff.  It is powerful praying.  When you pray, remember the power is not in the one who prays, but in the One who hears the prayer. 

Take joy in the journey. Wear comfortable shoes. Count your blessings and say your prayers.  Love you all so very much, Bruce, Gaylene, Geni and Travis.

Prayer alert:  Travis goes in for an interview with Starbucks tomorrow to become an assistant manager.  Please offer an extra prayer for him.

Prayer:  Please keep Dave and Carme Russell in your prayers as they inter Dave’s Mother tomorrow and Geni sings the service.  Peace, gc

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 Monday!

The services for David Russell’s mother, Jane, will be Friday, April 20 in McKinney, Texas. The burial will be at the National Cemetery in Grand Prairie, Texas beside her beloved husband, Richard. Due to our commitments with the Kairos Prison Ministry Weekend in Wichita Falls, Bruce and I will be unable to attend. In our absence Geni will not only be attending, but will lift her beautiful voice and sing the service. Please continue to pray for this most precious family as they mourn their loss, but celebrate the life of this most precious woman. Pray for Geni as she shares her God given gift of a glorious voice raised in praise to the living God.

Also, please pray for Travis. Tomorrow he goes for a mock interview for an assistant manager’s position within Starbucks. He will go in on Friday for the real interview with the district manager. If he is offered the position of assistant manager he will have to leave the Randol Mill Store and will work at the Starbucks by Central Market in Fort Worth. This is a wonderful opportunity for Travis and Starbucks will gain a wonderful young man on his way up!

Prayer: Father, this week is Your week. Speak truth and hope into my life. Give me ears to hear You speak. Grant me discipline to open Your Word in order to listen to Your voice. Whatever is before me, give me what I need at that moment. Even now, I listen to You. May You alone be praised. Amen.

James 5: 13, 14 Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing psalms. If there anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord.

Do you love to pray? If any of you know me, you know that I love to pray. Prayer occurs when we bring something before God and then listen to what God has to say to us. Upon the authority of God’s Word we are commanded to call upon the church spiritual leaders and ask them to pray over us when we are sick. So many of us do not think to pray first. We try to work things out for ourselves before inviting God to be a part of helping us work things out. Sometimes we are so overwhelmed that we ask God just to take it and work it out for us. When there are those around us who are in desperate need, then whatever their need may be, we must offer the need to the highest level; the throne of grace on which the King of Glory sits. We ask God to step into the situation in a personal and miraculous way, making His Presence known.

We all have needs which must be met. Pride will take us by the hand and tell that we can work it out ourselves. Stubbornness in us will cause us to just try to wait it out and believe that things will simply improve. That is sort of like trying to teach a child to read. As someone who has taught a great number of children to read, I don’t stop after the first lesson. I continue to teach until the learner has grasped not only the calling of the words, but the meaning of the text.

By continuing to pray past the first time, we can discern hidden messages of God meant for us. We get to hear these messages because we are covered in the Holy Spirit and believe in the name of Jesus. When we talk to God let us invite the promise of the day to each of us through the voice of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit will move into our thoughts and hearts giving the confidence that God will move upon us and assure us with his Holy Presence.

Take joy in the journey. Wear comfortable shoes. Count your blessings and say your prayers. Love you all, 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.

Blessed Sunday to you all.

Davis Russell’s mother passed away quietly this afternoon. Please continue to pray for David and his family in the loss of their mother. The service will be on Friday in McKinney.

Prayer: “Father, You are an awesome God! I give You praise and glory for the powerful moving of Your Holy Spirit within my heart. You have blessed my life beyond measure. You have endowed me with an abundance of joy and peace. My cup is running over! If only I could convey the depths of my soul with others so they, too, might know Your grace and mercy. I praise You in the morning as I look forward to the beauty of this day. Hallelujah!”

1 Corinthians 2: 10 But God has revealed them to us through His Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God.

The verse for today tells us the Apostle Paul spoke a godly truth to the church at Corinth. The truth is that God speaks the hidden truths about Himself only to those who have the Holy Spirit dwelling within themselves. I pondered this thought and I have my own thought concerning vs. 10.

A number of years ago Bruce and I went to Shakespeare in the Park. We sat at a table and the play began. If you have never or are not a regular reader of Shakespeare it takes a while to understand the language. The words were in English, but the language was difficult to understand. It took about 30 minutes but finally, after intently listening, the play began to make sense to us and we enjoyed the rest of the play. We did not have an ear for the language of Shakespeare at the beginning of the play.

I would never suppose to understand the language of heaven. It is a language I am not meant to understand yet. But God in His infinite wisdom gives us glimpses into heaven through His Word. But His Word only makes sense to us because the interpreter lives within us and helps us with the language. For us to understand the language of heaven, a totally spiritual language, the Spirit of God must live within us. Those who are not of God do not comprehend God or understand God’s Word; it sounds like babble.

God came to us in the Person of Jesus Christ in order to reveal Himself to those who would believe in God by faith. Let us praise God for the gift of salvation and thank Him for the Holy Spirit that teaches us and pleads our case before God in the language of heaven and allows God to be revealed in our very being.

Take joy in the journey. Wear comfortable shoes. Please continue your prayers for our friends David and Carme. Count your blessings and say your prayers. Love you all, 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.