5 Minutes with Jesus 10/25/12

Dear Jesus,

I am really enjoying spending this time with You in writing and, also, posting it so that others may be able to gain something from it, or be inspired to spend at least 5 minutes a day with you. Thank You for the idea and for always being available. Thank You also for my life and all the blessings contained within it. I am so grateful for true, long-lasting friendships and for my wonderful family relationships. I don't believe I could have asked for a better family. I am so thankful that we all get along and, for the most part, don't hold onto bitterness, anger, and unforgiveness. Lord, please help me to do a good job of passing those traits onto my children.
You know I am having some struggles right now when it comes to school and I am wondering exactly what path I should take. I will keep holding onto Phillipians 4:13 (I can do all things through Christ which strengthens me.). I know I can succeed. I wanted to give up, but I think it's just out of fear of failure/fear of losing financial aid and not being able to pay the difference. My husband just recently reminded me of a pastor he didn't even know prophesying to him to never make decisions based on finances. We also recently received a prophecy saying that God will take care of our financial needs even for five generations. Therefore, I must quit worrying, quit fretting about money. I will step out on faith and accomplish what You want me to accomplish and continue to believe You to meet my needs. Thank YOU. In Your Name, Amen.

5 Minutes With Jesus 10/24/12

Dear Jesus,

     Thank You again, for another beautiful day. I love being able to see the fall colors and I love the fact that You usually give us a little burst of summer right before it turns cold for the next 6 months. Thank You for the gift of sight. It truly is a gift. There are many people and animals who are unable to see the splendor of the Earth, but I am thankful that I can. I am thankful for my husband and my children. Today I am thinking about the many things that I have been blessed with that so many others don't have. One of my Facebook friends posted about being lonely and how that was out of character for them. I felt so bad because that is out of character for that particular person and many people seem to think that person is okay with being alone because they seem to always be so positive. However, it is a reminder that it is hard to be alone sometimes. You created us to want to fellowship with You and with others so it is actually unnatural for humans to live completely alone. This explains why the punishment of solitary confinement is so hard on prisoners. Imagine, in such a gray, dreary, walled in place, full of hatred - even self-hatred, it is not a relief to be away from people in this situation. It is a punishment. We all need somebody. Not just for sex, but just to sit next to sometimes. Somebody to hear moving around in the other room, reminding us that we are not in this big house, or this little apartment, by ourselves. We need to know that we are not forgotten.
     Lord, please bless my friend and help them to know that You are always present. You will be their comfort. I pray that they will seek You first and that You, in turn, will send them the physical presence that they are longing for. (Mk 10:28-31) In Your Name, amen.

Five Minutes With Jesus

Dear Jesus,

     Thank you for the blessing of another day. I think of the young people, my age, who have died recently and imagine the thought of not spending one more day here on Earth. I know that one day in your courts is better than 1000 elsewhere, but I also feel there is much unfinished work for me to do here. I feel that if today was my last day, I would have let You down. Therefore, I am thankful that I get another chance to honor you. Lord, sometimes it is hard for me to honor You everyday. Not that I don’t reverence You, but I believe that honoring You would consist of some outward act. Something that shows someone else a little bit of Your love. Maybe I’m actually thinking of a different word if I need to have an outward showing. Anyway, even if I touch somebody in person, or through the Internet, I want to be sure that I’m leaving a little piece of You behind. I think that is mandatory for me to do each day, so I will be working on that.

     As far as finishing my work here, I don’t feel that I am 100% sure about my actual purpose in life – the purpose You have for me, but I think I have some clues as to the direction I should be going in. I think that You put a teaching spirit in me and I've realized that since I was a child so I believe that whatever my ultimate goal in life is, You would definitely have me be a teacher of some sort. I’m not absolutely sure if that means a school teacher, a Sunday School teacher, just continuing to teach bible studies, or something entirely different. I guess the next step is to work toward that end and see what develops.

Thank You for this time, thank You for listening, thank You for allowing me to speak to you. I love You.

In Your Name, amen. J