Courage comes from Prayer

Esther 4:11-16
New King James Version (NKJV)
11 “All the king’s servants and the people of the king’s provinces know that any man or woman who goes into the inner court to the king, who has not been called, he has but one law: put all to death, except the one to whom the king holds out the golden scepter, that he may live. Yet I myself have not been called to go in to the king these thirty days.” 12 So they told Mordecai Esther’s words.

13 And Mordecai told them to answer Esther: “Do not think in your heart that you will escape in the king’s palace any more than all the other Jews. 14 For if you remain completely silent at this time, relief and deliverance will arise for the Jews from another place, but you and your father’s house will perish. Yet who knows whether you have come to the kingdom for such a time as this?”

15 Then Esther told them to reply to Mordecai: 16 “Go, gather all the Jews who are present in Shushan, and fast for me; neither eat nor drink for three days, night or day. My maids and I will fast likewise. And so I will go to the king, which is against the law; and if I perish, I perish!”

Esther, and orphan who had been crowned queen, has been called to a task that could cost her her life. Her cousin Mordecai has just disclosed the evil plot to annihilate all of the Jews from the Mede-Persian Empire and asked her to plead their case before the king. Esther had some real fears to contend with. She had become queen because the first queen, Vashti, had refused to obey the king, she knew first-hand the cost of disobedience. She had hidden her Jewish heritage from everyone when she had been taken as a candidate for queen and now she had not been called into the king's presence for 30 days and it would violate the law to go before the king without being called. The task itself seemed fruitless as Persian law stated that an edict from the king could not be overturned even by the king himself.
The fears were real, the task seemed hopeless yet her cousin reminded her that she may have been called "for such a time as this." Esther asks for fasting from everyone. Fasting in the Jewish culture was a time of intimate prayer and fellowship with God. Esther needed courage to do what God had called her to do, so she prayed. Not only did she pray but she enlisted an entire people group of believers to prayer with her and for her and then she resolved that God's will be done in her life. She would do what she was called to do no matter the cost.

Today what has called called you to do. Perhaps, like Esther, you have been called to such a time as this! You may feel insignificant, invisible, unworthy or ill-equipped. Drop to your knees and pray and enlist prayer warriors to pray for you and with you! Then, like Esther, confidently do what God has called you to do. He will equip you and go with you!

Father, Creator, Sustainer, Provider, Thank You for the power we have in prayer. Thank You for friends and family that You have given us who will pray with us and for us! Thank You for going with us into every situation and equipping us for the tasks You have created us for! Father I pray that You would be with me and each one that feels they are not ready, worthy, equipped or fearful of what might come from obedience to You. Give us Your courage and strength to be obedient and do all that You have created us to do. Thank You for Prayer! In Jesus powerful name, amen!

Today's Devotional

Brought to you by Prayer Team member Bobbi Heffel

Oh the feeling of getting all those things on your to-do list accomplished and checked off. And before lunch too! The rest of the day is before me and all the must do things are accomplished, what a victorious, freeing feeling. I am a little tired though, that took a bit of effort. It has me wondering. When Christ was there on the cross and declared “It is finished” what did that feel like? He had been beaten and physically depleted. But in that instant when he left that body behind and went to the Father with EVERYTHING completed…what that must have been like? It is Finished the Victory is Won!

The Death of Jesus
John 19:28-30
28 Later, knowing that all was now completed, and so that the Scripture would be fulfilled, Jesus said, “I am thirsty.” 29 A jar of wine vinegar was there, so they soaked a sponge in it, put the sponge on a stalk of the hyssop plant, and lifted it to Jesus’ lips. 30 When he had received the drink, Jesus said, “It is finished.” With that, he bowed his head and gave up his spirit. New International Version 1984 (NIV1984)

The Death of Jesus
Matthew 27:50-54
50 And when Jesus had cried out again in a loud voice, he gave up his spirit.
51 At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. The earth shook and the rocks split. 52 The tombs broke open and the bodies of many holy people who had died were raised to life. 53 They came out of the tombs, and after Jesus’ resurrection they went into the holy city and appeared to many people.
54 When the centurion and those with him who were guarding Jesus saw the earthquake and all that had happened, they were terrified, and exclaimed, “Surely he was the Son of God!” (NIV1984)

PRAYER
Thank you Lord that it is finished! The victory is won! We don’t need to do anything because You have completed it! We only need to accept what You have done for us and live. Live for You alone. As we stand with the tasks of daily life around us and troubles that pull at us, help us to stand in the victory You have accomplished. Thank you for the fresh breeze of freedom that you bring into our lives and the knowledge that you will never leave nor forsake us.

Hebrews 13:4-6
4 Marriage should be honored by all, and the marriage bed kept pure, for God will judge the adulterer and all the sexually immoral. 5 Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said,
“Never will I leave you;
never will I forsake you.”[a]
6 So we say with confidence,
“The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid.
What can man do to me?”[b]
Footnotes:
Hebrews 13:5 Deut. 31:6
Hebrews 13:6 Psalm 118:6,7

Today's Daily Devotion

Today's Devotion is brought to you by Prayer Team member Bobbi Heffel

Wise Men Still Seek Him

Matthew 2

 ¹NOW WHEN Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men [astrologers] from the east came to Jerusalem, asking, ²Where is He Who has been born King of the Jews? For we have seen His star in the east at its rising and have come to worship Him.    
Amplified Bible (AMP) biblegateway.com

I just love this time of year. There are twinkly lights and bright stars everywhere. They add so much beauty to what would really be a dark time of year. There is a restaurant I like to go to that has an old oak tree out front. The owners have put tables around under the tree. During the day it is a great place to sit and have lunch. But when dark comes and the white twinkly lights are turned on, that tree goes from just being a place out of the sun to magically romantic. 

I don’t imagine that the wisemen saw the star of Christ as magically romantic. It was something deeper than that. It was the excitement of the fulfillment of a promise long ago, for a promised king, a deliverer. This was the arrival of someone worthy of a long dusty travel and extravagant gifts; gold, frankincense, and myrrh. 

Yes, to see the beauty of the Christmas stars and know the story behind them is moving. But to personally know the savior that these lights represent is … ever growing. The more I learn about Him, the more I find there is to learn. I thought I knew how much he loved me; he stretched out his arms and died for me. But I learned that he loves me even more. I thought I knew that he would forgive me. But I am still learning how far the east is from the west. I thought I knew his grace was sufficient. Yet, I sometimes find myself holding on to things wondering how he could love me after this. How does his grace cover all the times we are in an impossible situation and doubt that he will come through? Yes, the more I know about him, the more there is to learn. With each discovery, I think those Christmas lights get just a bit brighter and twinkle-er.

Today’s Prayer

Lord, I thank you for this special time of the year we set aside to remember the birth of our savior. I know there are winter celebrations that have nothing to do with you. There is always an emptiness to them.  They are nothing to compare with the celebration of you. Help us to refrain from the commercial race of emptying our bank accounts in the attempt to celebrate your birth. With you there is a filling. You fill us with love, joy, hope, celebration, life and peace.  Help us to give wisely in accordance with your will. Please give us creative ways and opportunities to share with others.  Help us to share the love, joy, hope, celebration, life and peace you give with them. After all, the best gift that ever was or ever could be has already been given. There is no topping you! 

Today's Daily Devotion

Today's Devotion is brought to you by prayer team member Bobbi Heffel

From Trial to Triumph

Luke 23:26-43

The Crucifixion

 ²⁶ As they led him away, they seized Simon from Cyrene, who was on his way in from the country, and put the cross on him and made him carry it behind Jesus. ²⁷ A large number of people followed him, including women who mourned and wailed for him. ²⁸ Jesus turned and said to them, “Daughters of Jerusalem, do not weep for me; weep for yourselves and for your children. ²⁹ For the time will come when you will say, ‘Blessed are the barren women, the wombs that never bore and the breasts that never nursed!’ ³⁰ Then “‘they will say to the mountains, “Fall on us!” and to the hills, “Cover us!”’

   ³¹ For if men do these things when the tree is green, what will happen when it is dry?”

 ³² Two other men, both criminals, were also led out with him to be executed. ³³ When they came to the place called the Skull, there they crucified him, along with the criminals—one on his right, the other on his left. ³⁴ Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.  And they divided up his clothes by casting lots.

 ³⁵ The people stood watching, and the rulers even sneered at him. They said, “He saved others; let him save himself if he is the Christ of God, the Chosen One.”

 ³⁶ The soldiers also came up and mocked him. They offered him wine vinegar ³⁷ and said, “If you are the king of the Jews, save yourself.”

 ³⁸ There was a written notice above him, which read: THIS IS THE KING OF THE JEWS.

 ³⁹ One of the criminals who hung there hurled insults at him: “Aren’t you the Christ? Save yourself and us!”

 ⁴⁰ But the other criminal rebuked him. “Don’t you fear God,” he said, “since you are under the same sentence? ⁴¹ We are punished justly, for we are getting what our deeds deserve. But this man has done nothing wrong.”

 ⁴² Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.”

 ⁴³ Jesus answered him, “I tell you the truth, today you will be with me in paradise.”

John 19:25-27

Behold Your Mother

 ²⁵ Near the cross of Jesus stood his mother, his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. ²⁶ When Jesus saw his mother there, and the disciple whom he loved standing nearby, he said to his mother, “Dear woman, here is your son,” ²⁷ and to the disciple, “Here is your mother.” From that time on, this disciple took her into his home.

Matthew 27:45-50

The Death of Jesus

 ⁴⁵ From the sixth hour until the ninth hour darkness came over all the land. ⁴⁶ About the ninth hour Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi    lama sabachthani?”—which means, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”

 ⁴⁷ When some of those standing there heard this, they said, “He’s calling Elijah.”

 ⁴⁸ Immediately one of them ran and got a sponge. He filled it with wine vinegar, put it on a stick, and offered it to Jesus to drink. ⁴⁹ The rest said, “Now leave him alone. Let’s see if Elijah comes to save him.”

 ⁵⁰ And when Jesus had cried out again in a loud voice, he gave up his spirit. 

Sometimes we find ourselves in a situation that is out of control, unbearable, painful.  Sometimes we feel beat down and ready to give up. We have been hanging on to the last knot in our rope and Friday just won’t get here soon enough. What do we do? How do we go on? 

We follow the example of Jesus. The pain he endured on the cross was unbearable but he knew the Father had a purpose in it. Jesus endured the pain while still thinking of his mother’s needs and making arrangements for her future needs. He had physically been beaten to beyond recognition yet he didn’t hold malice toward the ones who attacked him. Better yet, he asked for forgiveness for the ones that had abused him. While hanging on to humanity and the life left in his body he never called upon the armies of angles at his disposal to rescue him. He lived out that situation knowing that was what he was born for and, that there was a great purpose in it. 

Whatever you are going through God is there with you in the midst of it. As out of control as it seems, he knows about it and he is in control of it. He will use it to refine you and bring you closer to him, if you allow him to. Remember that you aren’t the only one hurting. Reach out to others and help them however you can. Forgive the ones that have hurt you and are currently hurting you. Hang on until God tells you otherwise. We don’t always know why he created us, the task he has for us, or the prosperity he has for us around the next corner. We do know he loves us and we can trust him. “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” (Jeremiah 29:10-12)

Today’s Prayer

Father, here we are at the holiday season. Everything is decked out for Christmas and everywhere we look hearts and faces are aglow. As wonderful as this time of the year is it can leave us feeling lonely and filled with pain. Lord I pray for those of us who need your loving touch, a fresh filling of your joy, that we would experience your presence anew. Lord, take these things that grab us, hold us or bind us and put them in perspective so that we may leave them at your feet. Holy is you name! You are worthy to receive all glory, power and honor! Thank you for all you have done on our behalf and all you are still doing. Merry Christmas! We love you too! Amen

All scripture used today is from the New International Version 1984 (NIV1984) http://www.biblegateway.com/

Today's Daily Devotion

Today's Devotion is brought to you by Dream Team Member Bobbi Heffel

December can bring a lot of stress with the shopping and decorating. It is a great chance to practice our focus on Christ. He is the smile and joy when we greet someone with Merry Christmas. He is the light of the world and more beautiful than all the Christmas lights put together. He is sweeter than the aroma of vanilla and cinnamon drifting in from the kitchen.

He is everywhere we look. Not just in the manger scenes that pop up all over the place. All around us we see green, red and white. Red represents the blood He shed for us. White speaks of how He washes us as clean as fresh snow. Green tells of how we will live with Him forever.

Each gift reminds us that Christ was the perfect gift. I wonder if the tradition of wrapping is because Christ is God wrapped in flesh? Each cantata and carol a praise to Him. Glory to God in the highest, peace and good tidings on Earth.

Luke 2:9-11 (New International Version 1984 (NIV1984) Biblegateway.com)

9 An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. 10 But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. 11 Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ[a] the Lord.

Today's Prayer 
Lord, help me to remain focused on you today. Thank you for all the symbols and traditions that remind us of the greatest gift ever given. Thank you that we can share in the good news of great joy! Amen

Thanks Diane: Jon V guest blogger

First off, thank you Diane for allowing me to share my poetry! I'm a guest writer and my name is Jonathan Vasgar. I pray that the poems and thoughts will be a blessing. The first poem is one God gave me in a low point in my life. God bless, hope you enjoy.

Face of God
by Jonathan Vasgar

Trials are a hard thing, they tear out your heart.
They leave you torn and broken, ripped apart.
We cry out to God for answers, seeking to understand.
We forget to seek the face of God, instead we look to His hand.

Some of us have relationship trouble, heart broken in two.
Some of us have financial woes, no clue what to do.
Some of us are hit with terrible disease, such as cancer.
Remember, seek the face of God, for He knows the answer.

He knows our every desires, our goals, ambition-
Seek the face of God, He'll bring them to fruition.
He understand your struggle, confusion, and woe-
But seek the face of God, He'll show you where to go.

Don't doubt God's love, tenderness, or care.
Seek the face of God, He'll always be there.