Monday, September 14, 2009

Again I Say: Rejoice!!

Philippians 4:4-6

Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.




Wow. I couldn’t have read a better verse today! One thing that I have been struggling with for years is prayer. I never know what to say. I don’t want to sound greedy. Sometimes I feel stupid just talking to the air. But over the past couple of months I have learned to take everything to God in prayer. And he will provide. I am living proof of that. I love my job at Russ Darrow, and I have been part time for the past year since I started. And I was struggling every day to find a way to make ends meet. I was always looking for other part time jobs to fill in the hours that I didn’t work there, but nothing came up. And news last week came that our normal full time girl, due to personal reasons, was going down to part time and I would get the full time position. WHAT? Really? So, I sent my blessings up to God. Then today, I word that I will be getting a raise on my next check! I can’t tell you how much God has blessed me in the past couple of weeks. All the trails and pain that I have gone through only equip me to be a stronger person in my walk with God. And I have learned to pray earnestly and continuously. He will provide for you when you need it. And when you least expect it!



I have also become more open with my faith and not being ashamed to pray in public. I still struggle at times, but I am getting better at it. I have a problem with sitting and listening for God, though. I always have things running through my brain and I get distracted easily. Sometimes things are good, other times not so much. Sometimes I am running down my “to do” list and I lose sight of why I am bowing my head. There is a song called “Let the Waters Rise” from Mikeschair that has been my prayer the past couple months since I first heard it. I remember crying. I actually heard it again last night having a “worry” moment and it came at the right time and brought me to my knees in surrender.



Don't know where to begin
It's like my world's caving in
And I tried but i can't control my fear
Where do I go from here

Sometimes it's so hard to pray
You feel so far away
I am willing to go where You want me to
God I trust You

[Chorus]
There's a raging sea
Right in front of me
Wants to pull me in
Bring me to my knee
So let the waters rise


If you want them to
I will follow You
I will follow You
I will follow You





God will never put anything in front of you that you can’t handle. He’s just a prayer away when you feel like falling. He’ll pick you up when He knows you are ready. Praise God from whom all blessings flow.

3 comments:

Unknown said...

I love Philippians 4. I've often thought I'd like to memorize the whole thing. It wouldn't be too hard because I have a lot of it memorized already anyway.

Anonymous said...

Another super message that I really needed to hear today! Thanks so much!

Mindy said...

I am starting to dig Philippians myself, Emily!!

And you are welcome, PS. Glad to see I could bring you some encouragement.

Ahoy! Thanks for stopping by. Sometimes life should be an open book and here you will find that true. My mind is always on full speed and I will be heading over many waves. I hope this journey is as much of an adventure for you as it is for me~ ~Mindy