Nov. 9th, 2008 @ 03:22 pm Please watch this.Every once in a while, I know that I'm hearing what I need to hear right when I need to hear it.I don't usually make a strong request of my friends that each of them do something, but I ask that you please watch this if there's anything in your life that's making you anxious or scared. It's only about 5 minutes long, and it changed my whole perspective on today.About this Entrykittenrae:Leave a commentPermanent Link
Jan. 16th, 2006 @ 12:08 pm Something nice...I found this in my inbox, and wanted to share it with all of you. Something nice to think about; and maybe help uplift some of you. Hope everyone has a great day. :) II Corinthians 4: 16-18 Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.Looking back on the year 2005, there has been a lot of heart ache and troubles for people here in the United States and for those all around the world. It seems like we just get back up on our feet from one blow only to be knocked down by another. I don't need to tell you that we are in hard times. Things here on the earth can appear hopeless. But we who place our trust in Christ know that hope is on the horizon. We are not left here hopeless and helpless but we have our hope in eternal life with Christ. What is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal. All of these things we are going through are for a season, but life with the Lord is eternal. It is so easy to allow ourselves to get discouraged if we are concentrating on the darkness instead of the Light. The Lord never promised us that this was going to be easy, but He did promise to be with us and not to leave us without the means to get through the tough times. I believe that we are appointed by God to be alive at this time and He has placed within each one of us the resolve and faith to withstand the onslaughts of the enemy.More than any other time past we need each other. We need to allow the Holy Spirit to make us sensitive to that brother or sister that might be struggling or alone. We need to support each other and not allow differences to divide us. The Word tells us that inwardly we are being renewed and regenerated everyday. The Bible further tells us that His mercies are new every morning and His compassions they fail not. If the Lord can give us new mercies every morning, shouldn't we be able to give our brothers and sisters in Christ, and non believers alike new mercies? Maybe if we resolve to be more forgiving, more loving, and more giving in 2006 we can begin to see the Light of Christ burn more brightly through the darkness. Let us lean on the power of the Holy Spirit and on each other in the year ahead, encouraging one another in word and deed, covering everything in prayer.GOD Bless you all. I hope each of you has a wonderful year.About this Entrycargile24:2 commentsLeave a commentPermanent Link
Aug. 24th, 2005 @ 10:41 pm RequestI would like to ask everyone to keep my cousins Margaret and Carey in your thoughts/prayers. Margaret is 90 and has been battling cancer for some time. Her daughter Carey was recently diagnosed with cancer as well, stage 3 ovarian. Carey had surgery and is undergoing chemo, but unfortunately the cancer had spread to other areas so her outlook is questionable. I'm not sure what Margaret's outlook is.Thank you in advance.About this Entryt_jay:3 commentsLeave a commentPermanent Link
Aug. 8th, 2005 @ 01:29 pm The Splinter*copied from The Upper Room Daily Devotional dated June 18, 2005Read 2 Kngs 5:1-14"Naaman said,'Are not the Abana and Pharpar, the rivers of Damascus, better than any of the waters of Israel? Couldn't I wash in them and be cleansed?'" -2 Kings 5:12Our young son ran his hand over a piece of rough rood and got a splinter. He didn't like this because it hurt going in and irritated his hand. But he disliked our plans for removing the splinter even more. He objected vigorously to our offer to help. He claimed the splinter didn't really hurt and therefore didn't need to come out; he said it was already out; he even held the injured hand behind his back and tried to pass off his other hand as the one that was hurt. Fearing the treatment would be more painful thant he injury, he wanted to leave the splinter in. Like Naaman who was unwilling to wash in the Jordan, our son was unwilling to try the plan that would help him. Once we got the splinter out, he was glad. And the splinter, when it seemed so huge when it was in his hand, looked tiny once it was out. When I have some fault or grudge stuck in me, it may hurt and irritate me. But I still find all sorts of special reasons for leaving it alone. Once I stop argueing, however, GOD is able to do what must be done to help me toward healing and wholeness.Prayer: O Lord, make us willing to admit our need for your healing. Amen.About this Entrycargile24:2 commentsLeave a commentPermanent Link
Jul. 8th, 2005 @ 06:33 pm Hi hiCurrent Mood:exhausted Current Music: My Parents House is on Hi, helenangel mentioned this community too me so I decided to head on over, I liked what I saw and joined.My name is Tanya (but you could also call me Jack), and I'll be 20 in 7 days. I come from a Roman Catholic background (I was baptized, but it was more to shut the grandparents up then wanting me to grow up catholic). Since my parents divorce my mother has converted, and is now technically Anglican, but her and her husband have been going to a Jewish synagogue (and he is from some off-shoot of Pentecostal). My father has remained Catholic. I mention this as both my parents have the idea that I need to choose my own spirituality then having one "forced" on me.That said I am a Polytheist Pagan (as many pagans aren't polytheist), and I am always researching other religions/paths. And I am always thinking about/discussing religious matters. As a Cultural Studies major religion studies is a major element of my university life. But since I was small I've been researching the history and elements of various religions.Other quick facts so this post doesn't get too long: Canadian, mother to 2 spoiled rotten cats, I've suffered from depression for years (which has lead to me actively searching for a spirituality for me, and not just knowledge), geek.About this Entryarcanefairy:5 commentsLeave a commentPermanent Link
Jul. 7th, 2005 @ 09:46 am (no subject)I've been very unmotivated in my faith lately. I haven't been praying, and I haven't been to church in (I think) a month! Josh and I are greeters at church Sunday, so that will definitely get us there. I've just been kind of downtrodden in my relationship with God lately. I think I alluded to it the other day when I posted about prayer. I'm just not sure what to be praying about right now, so I just haven't really been talking to God at all. I'm trying to think it through... What do you do when you feel a loved one lets you down? What would I do if I felt Josh let me down? Well, the first thing is that I would really try to understand if Josh really did something, or if there was really something wrong with my expectations. If I still felt he let me down, I would care enough to talk to him about it. I certainly wouldn't leave things unsaid, letting things just fester. *sigh* I guess I just answered my own question.I'm thinking about starting an experiment for myself. I'm much more able to focus my thoughts when I write things down. I do this at work all the time - when I'm dealing with a complex issue, I get really linear and logical...going step by step, writing things down to work through them until the answer presents itself. So, I'm thinking that since I haven't been doing well with spoken prayer (okay, spoken in my mind, anyway, not out loud) - I tend to either forget to do it or my mind wanders off - I'm thinking about starting to write my prayers nightly in a journal. I'll keep the journal on my nightstand, so I'll have it ready when I want it. We'll see how this works.About this Entryokp:7 commentsLeave a commentPermanent Link
Jun. 30th, 2005 @ 07:59 am (no subject)I haven't posted here in a while, but I've been thinking about it. So, here it is! Something I've been struggling with over the last year or so is praying for things that I want. I know scriptures that people refer to, such as when Christ teaches about 'ask and ye shall receive, knock and the door shall be opened'. But I believe that God knows the entire plan for my life, including whether specific things I want or desire will be given to me. Josh and I have talked about this so many times. He tells me, and I believe it, that prayer should be about trying to align ourselves with God's will, not trying to align God with ours. So many times, I have wanted or worried about something and wondered whether God was listening. And then I get through whatever the experience happens to be, I look back on it, and I figure out - 'oh, so THAT is what God was trying to teach me'. So, for the most part, when I pray, it is always about 'Lord, help me to understand your plan for me, give me the wisdom, patience, and strength to learn the lessons You have for me. Help me to always use any trials to bring me closer to You, rather than apart from You.' I've just been having a tough time with remembering and using this lately.About this Entryokp:3 commentsLeave a commentPermanent Link
Jun. 13th, 2005 @ 11:47 am looking for some advice on prayer, and some plain old prayers, too.Someone I love dearly just lost a family member over the weekend. It seems like I've been doing a lot of praying for people this weekend, as it was rough for a lot of people I am close to, but this one... well, I've been praying for him, and I just want to know - have you ever had those times when you just lose the words? When you don't even know what to say to the Divine?About this Entryshadoequin:2 commentsLeave a commentPermanent Link
Jun. 8th, 2005 @ 08:59 pm Prayer request (Xposted to elysiankitten)Current Mood:worried When you get a chance in your prayers, please say one for my mother. She was admitted into the hospital yesterday for kidney problems due to diabetes and will be there for a while. I'll go into detail later when I have all of the information in order. Due to this, I won't be hitting LJ for a little bit. My mom is my world, and nothing has ever worried me so badly, so please keep her in your thoughts. Thanks, ya'll.About this Entryelysiankitten:3 commentsLeave a commentPermanent Link
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exhausted Current Music: My Parents House is on Hi,