The Promised Land

SCRIPTURE

 

Deuteronomy 11:8-12

 

8 "Therefore, be careful to obey every command I am giving you today, so you may have strength to go in and take over the land you are about to enter. 9 If you obey, you will enjoy a long life in the land the Lord swore to give to your ancestors and to you, their descendants—a land flowing with milk and honey! 10 For the land you are about to enter and take over is not like the land of Egypt from which you came, where you planted your seed and made irrigation ditches with your foot as in a vegetable garden. 11 Rather, the land you will soon take over is a land of hills and valleys with plenty of rain—12 a land that the Lord your God cares for. He watches over it through each season of the year!

 

 

PRAYER

 

Lord, deep in ______'s heart she longs for a promised land in her life. Circumstances and events have brought hardship, and she may be in a season of life that is much more like Egypt, where everything seems to come by labor and toil. I pray that you would give her the hope a promised land on the horizon of her future. I ask that you would cause the sun to rise on a new season of her life soon. Make her aware that you are beginning to take her there, even now. And Lord, in preparation for that day, draw her closer to you, deepen her love for you, and make her obedient to you in every area of her life. I ask that this commitment to you will give her the strength needed to enter this wonderful place in her life. Give her the faith to believe that you will slay every giant that stands between her and that Promised Land. Amen.

 

 

ENCOURAGEMENT

 

Trust him. Obey him. And when the moment arrives, step forward in faith. He will give you the strength you need to enter this land of his gracious provision.

 

Love Him

SCRIPTURE

 

Matthew 22:35-40

 

One of them, an expert in religious law, tried to trap him with this question: “Teacher, which is the most important commandment in the law of Moses?”

Jesus replied, “‘You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. A second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ The entire law and all the demands of the prophets are based on these two commandments.”

 

 

PRAYER

 

Lord, when the complications of life swirl around ______, and her mind spins with questions and the anxiety of tomorrow’s wonderings… I pray that you would slow her down… and bring her back to simplicity… loving you and loving others. Lord, well up within ______’s heart a deepening love for you. Take every ounce of passion, every joule of energy, every synapse of her mind and make them pulsate with a love for you. Cultivate a sense of worship of you in every moment of her day Lord. And as she senses this love for you washing over her every activity, thought and feeling, may your peace overwhelm and envelop her very soul. In that peace, may she spill your love into the lives of those she touches. May the love she gives come back to her a hundred fold in measure. Amen.

 

 

ENCOURAGEMENT

 

Love well. Make him the center of your love, and people the overflow. And watch to see if God will not measure back to you more love that you could have ever imagined. Watch and see girl.

Peaceable Wisdom

 

SCRIPTURE

 

 

James 3:17-18

But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, reasonable, full of mercy and good fruits, unwavering, without hypocrisy. And the seed whose fruit is righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.

 

Romans 12:18, 21

If possible, so far as it depends on you, be at peace with all men…

Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

(NASB)

 

 

PRAYER

 

Lord, there are some who hover around ______’s life who are simply not peaceable. The sting of their judgment penetrates like a biting wind. And although they offer accusations with a religious cloak, they are far from gentle or merciful. And the fruit of the seeds of their words are far from peaceful and much closer to the evil accusations of the enemy. I pray that you would keep ______’s heart in peace today Lord. I ask that you would help her to release ownership of their words, judgments, and responses, and embrace her own heart and actions only. May she do those things that make for peace, whether or not they are accepted. May you protect her from the evil judgments around her, and move her to simply do what is right, from her heart. And Lord, I ask that as she steps forward with courage and does what she knows pleases you, that she would overcome the evil judgments with the good of your grace. I ask that you would fill ______ with your peace today Lord. Amen.

 

 

ENCOURAGEMENT

 

Stand up, march forward and do good ______. Do good no matter what anyone else says. Do it with courage. Do it in the face of accusations, misunderstanding, and judgments. Overcome their evil with your good. And rest in his peace.

 

 

Groan Your Desires to God

SCRIPTURE

 

Romans 8:26-28 (selected)

In the same way the Spirit also helps our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we should, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words… He intercedes for the saints according to the will of God. And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.

(NASB)

 

 

PRAYER

 

Lord, at times ______ finds herself in such a place of pain and confusion that she is not even sure how to pray. Her soul aches for both your will and her heart’s desire. Swirling around the mix is a healthy dose of people’s sinful actions and the attendant consequences that flow. Making sense of it all, and articulating a prayer that is in line with your will, and will work good from the chaos just seems beyond her. Thank you that your Spirit takes ______’s deep heart and conveys it accurately in a prayer that is according to your will. Thank you that you will take everything in this girl’s life and work it together for her good. I ask that you would help her to feel your Spirit groaning with her, pushing together in a direction that will ultimately work your perfect purpose and plan from the imperfection that surrounds her life. Hear her desire for your will Lord, and honor that with an answer that makes her heart leap. Amen.

 

 

ENCOURAGEMENT

 

He knows your heart and his. He can do this, dear girl, he can work the magic of good from even this. Groan your desires to God through His Spirit, and watch him weave the sovereign tapestry for your good and his glory.

 

Calming the Emotional Storm

SCRIPTURE

 

Proverbs 4:23

Watch over your heart with all diligence, for from it flow the springs of life.

(NASB)

 

Romans 12:2

And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.

(NASB)

 

 

PRAYER

 

Lord, there are times when ______'s mind throbs with a constant pounding of unwelcome thoughts about past events, present concerns, and an uncertain future. It is as though her thoughts feed an emotional swirl of regret, anxiety, and worry. The emotions trigger more thoughts, which feeds more emotions until the swirl has become a downward and darkening spiral. I pray that at this moment you would set her free Lord. Transform her thoughts. Renew her mind. Refocus the lens of her mind onto those good and beautiful gifts you have given. Allow her to bask in your forgiveness and healing from yesterday, your strength and wisdom for today, and the hope of her desires and dreams for tomorrow. Cause her heart to swell with gratitude for the love she feels from you, the faith you are building in her, and the bright hope you put on her horizon. May ______ feel the storm within her calm, and the sun of your grace begin to warm her soul. And tonight may she fall into a peaceful sleep, secure in your strong arms. Amen.

 

 

ENCOURAGEMENT

 

Dear dear ______, rest your weary mind on his love, and grace, and forgiveness, and compassion, and wisdom, and strength, and hope. Rest your thoughts, and watch your emotions follow. You are his, dear girl. He is always near.

 

Nourishing the Soul

SCRIPTURE

 

1 Peter 1:24, 2:2-3

"People are like grass; their beauty is like a flower in the field. The grass withers and the flower fades. But the word of the Lord remains forever."… So get rid of all evil behavior, deceit, hypocrisy, jealousy, and all unkind speech. Like newborn babies, crave the pure spiritual milk of the word so that you will grow into a full experience of salvation. Cry out for this nourishment, now that you have had a taste of the Lord's kindness.

 

 

PRAYER

 

Oh Lord, ______'s heart has felt the violence of imperfect people, and the loss of those she loves. Coping with this pain sometimes drains her reserves, and leaves her weak and spent. Please feed her with your words of life. Well up within her a longing for the milk of your word. Lead her to those passages of scripture that will strengthen and sustain her spirit. Make those words sweet to her taste and nourishing to her soul. She knows well that people fade from her life like flowers of the field, so Lord, make her know equally well that your words of life will never fail her. Make her to lean upon you. At this moment Lord, I ask that you would reach her deepest places with the sweet sustenance of your truth. Amen.

 

 

ENCOURAGEMENT

 

Feast upon his eternal words, dear girl. Savor the taste, and texture of his truth. It will never fail you.

 

A Humble Heart

SCRIPTURE

 

1 Peter 5:6

"So humble yourselves under the mighty power of God, and at the right time he will lift you up in honor."

 

 

PRAYER

 

Lord, I ask that you would keep ______'s heart soft and easily molded by your hand. I pray that she would not be occupied with the need to be honored by people, but that she would long for your approval and smile. I pray that her humble spirit would so groom the substance of her heart that when the heat of adversity comes, it would soften her heart like wax rather than harden it like clay. May that softness take away some of the pain of your work, and give you an open space to work in her life. And I pray that as others see the clear marks of your shaping hand, that she would receive honor at just the right time. Amen.

 

ENCOURAGEMENT

 

Concentrate on cultivating a genuine humility in your own heart. Leave the honoring to God. He will work his miracles in his own time.