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“LET IT GO!”

Me-Maw Thoughts

Number 716

December 31, 2024///

In a few hours 2024 will be gone! And whether we are asleep or awake, 2025 will be here!

No matter what 2024 has brought to you, good things or bad, the years move on!

Your year and the holidays may have been the worst ever or maybe they were the best, or a mixture of both!

But you have a new year to be a better you and let the Lord Jesus fill you inside with His peace that nothing else can give!

Regrets, I have some. I have some things I wanted to accomplish but did not, I have some people I wanted to reach out to but did not, but we cannot live in regrets, we need to look forward and ask God to mold us into the image of His Son Jesus!

Seasons change, years change, and people change. But may I remind you of something that never changes!

Hebrews 13:5 B (KJV)

: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.

Jesus said he would always be with us and never leave us! Do you feel lonely, you are not alone! Do you feel forgotten, you are not! Do you feel helpless, you are not that either!

You are Loved by the creator God and He will never leave you nor forsake you!

Rest in that promise and lay hold to the truth that you are loved, and you are precious to Him!

As we face the new year, we should take the stand that Paul took in Philippians!

Philippians 3:13–14 (KJV)

13 Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, 14 I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.

The Frozen movie tells us to “Let it Go”!

That is what leaving all the regrets, the hurts, and the failures is: LETTING IT GO!

So, I ask you! What do you need to leave behind and let go of!

Is it an attitude of offense or hurt feelings?

Is it failure to be responsible for your family?

Is it being slack on the job?

Slack in church attendance and study of the word and prayer?

Unforgiveness for some who hurt you!

Is it a sense of not being good enough?

How about a feeling of not being loved by God?

Bad attitudes about physical issues?

The list could continue but you know what is hindering you from moving forward with your life!

Relief comes when we truly let it go and release all of it to the lordship of Jesus Christ who loves each of us more than we can comprehend!

So, my encouragement to each of us is to let all that bothers us, hinders us, or stirs up feelings of anger in us go, and trust in the Lord’s love and care!

May we face 2025 knowing that we are enough, and we can do all things through Christ who give us strength!

Knowing that we are the apple of His eye, and He will never leave us nor forsake us!

Snuggle, don’t struggle!

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Father, in Jesus’ name I come and ask you to touch each of us deep in our spirits and let us feel your warmth and love! Thank you for helping each of us go forward into 2025, leaving behind all the junk that weighs us down and walking into the new year in Faith and Victory! Amen!

Love, MeMaw

“GIFTS!”

Me-Maw Thoughts

Number 715

December 24, 2024///

            I Want to first say that I pray your Christmas Eve and Christmas Day and any other time you are celebrating Jesus Birth, will be the most amazing time ever!

I ask you to pause right now and say thank you Jesus for choosing to leave Heaven and come as a baby to make it possible for us to go to heaven!

The prophets foretold it, the angels announced it, and the Star shone because of it!

We think about the gifts we will give our kids, our family, and our friends. But do we consider a gift to Jesus.

I know money came to your mind when I said a gift for Jesus, and many do give a special Love offering this time of year.

But let us look at the gifts we can give Jesus that are maybe more difficult than writing a check or giving away some cash!

Mary gave her willingness to bear the Savior even though the hardship of not being understood would happen. Joseph gave himself to be responsible for the Christ Child and His mother and follow God’s direction every time!

The shepherds followed the word from the angel and came and worshiped!

The wise men gave gold and other valuable things!

There is a Christmas song, true or not, that shows this point! The “Little Drummer Boy” had no gold, but he had his little drum. He played it for Jesus and Jesus was pleased!

When Jesus was brought to the Temple for dedication to the Lord, Simeon prophesied of the Child Jesus future! At that same time Anna gave worship and praise to Him!

The disciples followed Jesus as He called them. Are we following what Jesus calls us to do?

Obedience is Praise in action and is a gift to the Lord God Almighty!

What to we have to give to Jesus?

Praise, obedience, encouragement to others, a smile, food to the hungry, clothes to those in need. Every good thing we do for others in Jesus’ name is like a gift to Him the Bible tells us!

We can make sure our family understands the real “Reason for the season”!

We can pray for those we know are grieving loved ones who died this year and even recently!

We can hug our family a little longer and a little tighter, as we praise God for each of them!

These are all gifts to the one who is light and gives us light!

But there is a little poem that expresses the gift that is most pleasing to the Lord God Almighty!

I have shared this before, but I ask you to think about it!

WHAT CAN I GIVE HIM, AS POOR AS I AM!

IF I WEAR A SHEPHERD, I’D GIVE HIM A LAMB!

IF I WERE A WISE MAN, I WOULD DO MY PART!

I KNOW WHAT I’LL GIVE HIM: I’LL GIVE HIM MY HEART!

The gift Jesus wants most is your heart!

I encourage you to surrender all of yourself: mind, will and emotions to the one who knows you best and loves you most!

Have an incredible holiday and 2025 is going to be more wonderful than you can imagine!

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Father, this season of giving we come with all we are and all we are not and lay it at your feet. Use each of us for your kingdom and let us spread your love! In Jesus name I pray! Amen!

Love and Blessings!

Me-Maw

“TEEN JESUS!”

Me-Maw Thoughts

Number 714

December 17, 2024///

A while back I answered the phone at our church and the young man on the other end asked me a question I had never thought about.

He wanted to know what Jesus was like as a teenager!

I have wondered and posed the question before of when Jesus knew He was the Son of God on earth to save us from our sins! Was it in the manger, was it at two when the wise men gave Him gifts or was it as a little boy with Joseph in the carpenter shop as he worked with wood and realized He would create something wonderful of each of us just as he was learning to do with the wood!

I wonder! But if you are familiar with the story, you know the only thing we know from the visit of the wise men until Jesus was twelve is what we are told in the statement found in Luke 2.

Luke 2:40 (KJV)

 And the child grew, and waxed strong in spirit, filled with wisdom: and the grace of God was upon him.

May we confess that same thing over our children that they are growing in spirit, filled with wisdom, and have the grace of God on them!

We know at age twelve Jesus knew who He was and who His Father was.

At twelve the word tells us Jesus was in Jerusalem with His family and after learning from and asking questions of the religious leaders, we find that His parents had been looking for Him.

When finding Him and expressing their concern that He had separated from their travel group, Jesus declared that “He must be about His Fathers (Gods) business.”

However, He knew that the time was not yet, so He went home with His parents and the word tells us again in Luke 2 what transpired between age twelve and age thirty as He appears when John is baptizing in the Jordan.

Luke 2:51–52 (KJV)

51 And he went down with them, and came to Nazareth, and was subject unto them: but his mother kept all these sayings in her heart. 52 And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man.

But what was Jesus like as a teenager?

We know from the verses I just listed that He grew in Body (stature), Wisdom from His Father in heaven, and favor with those around Him!

We know because Jesus was perfect in every way that He did not talk back to His parents or rebel against them. He was not mean to his siblings or play tricks on the neighbors.

As they worked in the carpenter shop, maybe He and Joseph talked about His miraculous birth and Josephs visits from the angel with direction for the earthly parents of the Word made flesh come to us one silent night!

I wonder!

Did the teenage Jesus who was both divine and human have acne or win every game He played, or teach his siblings the things He was learning from His heavenly Father?

I wonder!

As he walked in the woods communing with God the Father, did he look at the trees and think about the fact that on a tree He would be crucified by the will of the religious leaders of His day who should have been open to the Messiah!

I wonder!

What we do know is that He was open to learning. He let wisdom from God fill Him and He was kind and loved by others.

We know that He waited until God’s timing to step forth into His destiny!

I encourage us to take lessons from this. We should grow in wisdom, respect and favor with God and man. We show know the timing of the next step of faith we are to take.

Just as Jesus received His instruction from his heavenly and earthly fathers, we should also learn from God and from others!

I wonder: what was Jesus like as a teenager?

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Father, thank you for this season when we can stop and celebrate the bundle of Love you sent to earth, that grew to bear our past, present and future sins and rise in victory. Because Jesus is victorious, we are victorious! Thank you for Love so amazing! In Jesus name I pray! Amen!

Do you wonder?
Love, MeMaw!

“SANTA”

Me-Maw Thoughts

Number 713

December 10, 2024///

Christmas is upon us, and I pray all of you reading this understand we are celebrating the Birth of the Savior of the world!

Having said that I want to share with you some thoughts I have on Santa Claus!

Please read to the end of this to get the entire point of these thoughts!

Traditions past down have stated that way back long ago there was a man named Nicholas whose became Saint Nicholas. The story goes that he had a lot of money and would spread cheer with gifts to the poor children around him and would do it on Christmas Eve without anyone knowing it.

Tradition says from this came Santa Claus, who is right now on every corner, in stores and on our televisions and computers.

True or not my thoughts on Santa, decorations and the other things we do at this time of the year, all point to the Son of the Living God who came as a baby to grow and show us how to live and then take all our past, present, and future sins and was nailed to the cross, rose again, and if we believe and receive sets us free to be all we were created to be.

How is that possible?

I believe the tradition of Santa is the Love that we can show to each other and those around us who are hurting, not just at Christmas but all through the year!

Not just with donations of money, which are great, but really getting involved in helping those who are less blessed than us!

If you have small kids, this time of the year is a time when you can take them shopping for things for those who may have nothing on Christmas morning.

This teaches them to reach out and share the blessings our Heavenly Father pours down on most of you who are reading this.

I believe Santa is a spirit of giving and we can make it a spirit of giving in Jesus’ name.

We can also make sure our children, and friends understand we have trees because they point upward to Jesus and the lights and decorations show that He is the light of the world.

We give gifts because God gave His Son Jesus so that we could be reconciled to our Heavenly Father.

We sing songs about His Birth and see plays and presentations. These all drive home the reason for the season!

The times of family and fellowship show us we are all created by a loving Father and we may disagree, but we can love and fellowship anyway!

I encourage you to embrace the spirit of giving and reach out with love to someone you know who may be lonely, wondering how they can celebrate in the situation they are in.

During all of this, enjoy the lights, the celebrations, and the wonder on the face of a child. Jesus wants us to celebrate with Joy!

Santa Claus came from an event in history that may be true or not!

But the spirit of Love is real and JESUS, the reason for the season is real!

This song says it all!

“C” is for the Christ Child Born upon this day
“H” for herald angels in the night.

“R” means our Redeemer
“I” means Israel

S” is for the star that shone so bright.

T” is for the three wise men they who travelled far
“M” is for the manger where He lay.

“A” is for all He stands for
“S” means shepherds came

And that’s why there’s a Christmas Day

May we all remember why there is a Christmas Day!

May we Honor our Savior and lift Him up in Praise, and spread love, not just this time of year but the whole year through!

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Father, thank you for the gift of your son, sent to set us free. Forgive us when we get our focus off you! We praise you and desire to be your hand extended to all we encounter in this road called life! Amen!

Have an Amazing Season of Christ Birth!

“WATER”

Me-Maw Thoughts

December 3, 2024

Number 712///

Last night I was going to make a cup of decaf coffee. We have a coffee pot that uses k-cups. I poured in the water, inserted the k-cup, and pushed start.

I left the room and when I came back in to retrieve the needed cup of coffee, behold the coffee cup was sitting on the counter and coffee was all over the counter, under the pot and there was a mess.

Yes! I had not put the cup in its place to catch the coffee!

I had to clean the counter, under the pot and even though I could soak most of it up with paper towels, I had to use plain water to wash away all the remaining mess!

We use plain water for showers, rinsing our mouths after brushing our teeth, washing our hands, washing clothes, boiling eggs, or other things.

We mix water with other items to make, coffee, tea, Kool-Aid, hot chocolate, all kinds of food and the list goes on!

Clean water is such an important part of our daily lives we forget how much we depend on it.

That brings me to my thoughts for today!

The Bible tells us that our Spirits need water: the water of the word of God, the Bible!

Ephesians 5:26 (KJV)

 That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word,

This cleansing is talking about the followers of Jesus, the true Church! We are cleansed from all that keeps us from living a life that glorifies Jesus and sets us free to be all that He created us to be!

We need to read and meditate on the Bible some each day and commit our days to live for Him and He will clean up the messes we make and those not of our own making and let the truth of His word, the pure water of the word, make us clean!

John 4:14 (KJV)

 But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life.

Jesus gives us life from the inside out and as we live in this life and pick up messes from the culture we live in of attitudes or worries or concerns, and even messes of life we make, time in the pure word of God refocuses our soul, spirit and body and makes us clean!

Just as we need to clean our bodies each day: the innermost part of us, the real us, needs to be cleansed and renewed each day!

In this busy season we are in, it is easy to get sidetracked from a daily time in the Bible. The Bible is a road map and is the water of real life. It will guide you and fill you with peace, as you grasp with a fresh understanding of how much the creator of the universe loves you!

Make the time daily, to be washed in the pure water of the word of God! If nothing else read some of the Psalms David wrote and let the God David depended on give you peace deep inside.

I challenge you in this season when we celebrate the Birth of our Savior that we do not let the task of the season crowd out the reason for the season.

May I tell you the season and life are all about Him!

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Father, thank you for your word that will give us life that flows from deep within. Thank you for not having to live one moment without your guidance as we submit each day to you. Help each of us to keep our priorities straight as we are in this busy time of the year. May each of us keep our focus on the reason for the season! Amen!

Love, MeMaw!

“THANKSGIVING”

Me-Maw Thoughts

Number 711

November 26, 2024///

Psalm 103:1–5 (KJV)

Bless the Lord, O my soul:

And all that is within me, bless his holy name.

Bless the Lord, O my soul,

And forget not all his benefits:

Who forgiveth all thine iniquities;

Who healeth all thy diseases;

Who redeemeth thy life from destruction;

Who crowneth thee with lovingkindness and tender mercies;

Who satisfieth thy mouth with good things;

So that thy youth is renewed like the eagle’s.

As I have written before we should be thankful every day, and I love to call it Thanks living!

But this week has been set aside as a special time to give thanks for all God’s Blessings. As the Pilgrams and the Indians celebrated together the Blessings God had bestowed on them, we should do the same as we gather with friends and family to remember God’s Blessings on us all!

But there are so many in our great country that do not feel blessed as they face this week filled with stress, sicknesses, griefs over lost loved ones, and are walking through tragedies in their lives.

I admonish all of us, whether we are walking in Blessings or despair to look at the scripture above. When we receive Jesus as our Savior, we receive benefits and can walk in those.

Just as employee benefits are not used all at the same time, we may not all need all these spiritual benefits at the same time, but they are ours!

We are forgiven, healed, redeemed, crowned with lovingkindness and mercies, and are satisfied with good things and our youth is renewed like the eagles.

Even if we do not see all these active in our lives today, if we just continue to Trust in God’s Love for us, these benefits will manifest in our lives.

For instance, right now I need my youth renewed, and many of us need healing in our bodies.

But rather than get concerned or worry about these things, I encourage you to begin to thank God for His benefits.

Begin to quote Psalm 103: 1-5 in the first person!

LIKE: Lord, I bless you from the depths of my soul and I do not forget your Benefits! Thank you that you have forgiven me, redeemed me, you are giving me health and healing in my body, soul and spirit! You lift me up, satisfy my soul, and renew my youth, and I Bless you and praise you for that!

As we begin to voice God’s promises that are true, we will find ourselves lifted in the deepest part of our innermost being. God’s is Faithful and inhabits the praises of His people!

So, I admonish you that no matter the circumstances you are in or face this week, remember the Benefits that are yours and begin to claim them by just saying them our loud. You may not feel blessed, as you voice Bless the Lord, but keep repeating God’s word and you will find it is soon stirring up real praise deep inside.

I sincerely reach out to you are in a dark place right now and just want you to know you are loved by the one who created you and knows you best!

I pray and declare each person reading this has an amazing and wonderful thanksgiving, even if it is only you and the Lord God Almighty celebrating!

Turn this Thanksgiving into Thanks Living and give God praise every day!

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Father, I come with a heart full of praise and adoration and give you Glory for who you are and who you are in me. You love each of us as we are, but you love us too much to leave us that way. Continue to change us for your Glory! Father, help us to remember your Blessings given to each of us! We have shelter, food, clothes, and breath, and may we allow you to just love us in and through all that is happening in our lives, good or bad! Let each one who reads this know and feel your unconditional love for them. I ask this all in Jesus’ name! Amen!

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving!

Love, MeMaw!

“PRAISE AND THE WORD!”

MeMaw Thoughts

 Number 210

November 19, 2024///

Psalm 100:4 (KJV )

Enter into his gates with thanksgiving,

And into his courts with praise:

Be thankful unto him, and bless his name.

Today I want to share scriptures that give us instructions to praise the Lord, and they tell us who He is. I encourage you to read these aloud several times and meditate on what they say. It will lift you up and give you a smile!

Psalm 95:1–7 (KJV)

O come, let us sing unto the Lord:

Let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation.

Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving,

And make a joyful noise unto him with psalms.

For the Lord is a great God,

And a great King above all gods.

In his hand are the deep places of the earth:

The strength of the hills is his also.

The sea is his, and he made it:

And his hands formed the dry land.

O come, let us worship and bow down:

Let us kneel before the Lord our maker.

For he is our God;

And we are the people of his pasture, and the sheep of his hand.

Psalm 91:1–2 (KJV)

He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High

Shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.

I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge and my fortress:

My God; in him will I trust.

Psalm 1:1–3 (KJV)

Blessed is the man

That walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly,

Nor standeth in the way of sinners,

Nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful.

But his delight is in the law of the Lord;

And in his law doth he meditate day and night.

And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water,

That bringeth forth his fruit in his season;

His leaf also shall not wither;

And whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.

Psalm 150:6 (KJV)

Let every thing that hath breath praise the Lord.

Praise ye the Lord.

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Father God may each one who reads this understand the power of your word and of praise! In Jesus name I pray! Amen!

Love, MeMaw

“OUR TIMES!”

Me-Maw Thoughts

Number 709

November 12, 2024///

I am in awe of how close we are until the end of the year. It seems as if we are flying from month to month and year to year!

I remember when I was younger hearing that time seemed to pass faster the older you got. Well maybe that is what I am experiencing at 80 years old.

For whatever reason days turn quickly into weeks, weeks quickly into months, and months quickly into years.

I am reminded that the Bible says our times are in His hands! God knows our beginning and ending. He knows what our life holds today, tomorrow and the future!

God has created us and placed us on this earth to fulfill the plan He has for us to make this earth a better place!

If we have received the gift of life Jesus paid for on the cross and are doing our best to honor Him with our lives, we can be assured that we will live until it is in His plans to take us to heaven.

I look back at how my mom died and seven months later my dad died, and I have to rest in the fact that their times were in His hands. Many times, a death will take us by surprise, and we wonder why, but if the person is a Christian and living close to Jesus, we must decide to believe the truth that He has our times in His hands, or we reject what God’s word says.

Psalm 31:15 (KJV)

My times are in thy hand:

If we believe our times are in His hands and that we are created for a purpose then we must follow the scripture that tells us to understand that we may not have tomorrow, or even the rest of the day.

Ephesians 5:16 (KJV)

Redeeming the time because the days are evil.

What does that mean? When we redeem coupons or gift cards we try to use them wisely.

I believe the scripture is telling us to use our time wisely. To make each day count and to love others, knowing that our time on earth will end at some point.

We are to redeem or use the time to show and share with others the best way to live which is with a heart toward Jesus and live each day with eternity in mind.

We sometimes will save a special piece of clothing or special dishes or a plan to do something for someone, until a future time. But what if that future time does not come?

I do not mean to be morbid, but I am just saying what we do, use, and share should all be done with eternity in mind.

Make the call, bake the cake for someone, visit the friend, write the card or letter but most of all pray for those around us, our churches, county, State, Country, and world!

Our future is in God’s hands, but only if we release all we are and all we are not to Him.

However, our prayer for those who do not believe can light a desire within them to be reconciled to the one who created all people and everything.

I have heard it said: Prepare as if you are going to live forever and live as if this is your last day on earth!

I say: Live every day to its fullest and Love and be kind to all you meet and do it all as unto the Lord Jesus!

You were created on purpose and for a purpose!

What is your purpose!

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Father, thank you that every person who ever lived was and is created for a purpose. May each one who reads this walk in the purpose you created them for. It is walking in your way and the reason we are here on earth is the only way to be truly at peace and find real Joy! I ask this in Jesus’ name! Amen!

Love, MeMaw

‘FREEDOM!”

Me-Maw Thoughts

Number 708

November 5, 2024///

Before I begin my thoughts for today, I want to urge you to vote. If you are receiving this as an email you have most of the day to vote and if you are reading it when it is posted to Joshua’s Place face book, you have a little time, but you need to hurry.

Voting is a privilege we have in the United States that much of the world do not have! May we not waste our right to let our preference known!

Now to today’s thoughts! As I was thinking about what the outcome of this election means to our nation my mind went to the original price paid for the freedoms we enjoy. There have been high prices paid since then also but let us look at the beginning.

Our ancestors decided they wanted the Freedoms of living life and worshipping God as they pleased. They came with force against taxation without representation, they were forced to endure! And they fought long and hard and came out victorious.

Lives were lost and many lives have been lost since fighting for our freedom to keep the United States our country with representation!

I shudder to think of what those original fighters would think of our country not fighting the enemy but fighting each other and hate and division rampant!

United we stand and divided we fall! Which category do we want to be in? We must come together as a nation and clean up our morals and look to the God of our Fathers to set this Nation: “ONE NATION UNDER GOD,” straight!

I am going to reprint here the words to the “Star Spangled Banner,” and on this election day I encourage you to read and think about every word!

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“STAR SPANGLED BANNER”

O say can you see, by the dawn’s early light
What so proudly we hailed at the twilight’s last gleaming
Whose broad stripes and bright stars through the perilous fight
O’er the ramparts we watched, were so gallantly streaming?
And the rockets’ red glare, the bombs bursting in air
Gave proof through the night that our flag was still there;
O say does that star-spangled banner yet wave
O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave?

On the shore dimly seen through the mists of the deep
Whеre the foe’s haughty host in drеad silence reposes
What is that which the breeze, o’er the towering steep
As it fitfully blows, half conceals, half discloses?

Now it catches the gleam of the morning’s first beam
In full glory reflected now shines in the stream:
‘Tis the star-spangled banner, O long may it wave
O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave


When our land is illumined with Liberty’s smile
If a foe from within strike a blow at her glory
Down, down with the traitor that dares to defile
The flag of her stars and the page of her story!
By the millions unchained, who our birthright have gained
We will keep her bright blazon forever unstained!
And the Star-Spangled Banner in triumph shall wave
While the land of the free is the home of the brave

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Did you notice the last verse! Foes from within. Is that what is happening, are foes from within threatening our very freedoms many died for?

May we be strong in the Lord and continue to pray for unity and right in our country and may we honor the Flag that many are burning!

Voting and prayer are both privileges. May we use both to the fullest!

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Father, thank you for those who had a vision of freedom of life and liberty lived fully. May they not have died in vain to give us privileges we do not deserve if we are going to walk in hate and evil toward each other. Forgive us for our attitudes and help us to remember that Freedom is never Free! Thank you that Jesus paid the price for our ultimate Freedom through Him! In His wonderful name I pray! Amen!

Love, MeMaw!

“PRAYER!”

Me-Maw Thoughts

Number 707

October 29, 2024///

Those of you who are around me very often, know that I believe in prayer.

Prayer for common everyday things like parking places or favor with a customer service person or finding what is needed for a particular situation.

I pray for our church, pastors, and the different ministries. I pray for family, friends, and our country and I pray for Gods leading in everything I do.

I pray also for miracles for situations that look hopeless.

Today I want to discuss the different ways we can pray and the power of prayer.

There are three key things to growing in the knowledge and leading of the Holy Spirit to be all we are created to be.

Those are the Bible, Prayer, and Praise!

Our time spent reading and letting the word touch us gives us power in prayer.

When Jesus was tempted His response was “It is written,” finishing with the scripture that dispelled the temptation.

But we must know the word to use it. Using the word as you pray is an amazingly effective way to have a powerful prayer life.

Jesus would many times go away from the crowds to be alone and pray (speaking and listening).

We need that time apart from the business of life to express our needs and listen to instruction from God the Father, through the spirit deep inside us. The urging inside or the peace that comes when you know the direction to take or the answer to your question.

We also need to use the three keys I shared above when we pray. We can share our needs in the form of answers in the scripture praising God for the answer.

An example is: Father, I come in the name of Jesus! I thank and praise you for supplying all my needs according to your riches in Glory and I claim that this day, over the financial needs of my life. You will open the windows of heaven and pour out blessings we cannot contain in our life!

That small prayer has the need, the word, and praise and declaration!

We can be very specific in what our needs are but surround them with the word and praise!

The Bible also tells us to pray without ceasing. This is a constant attitude of prayer as we go about each day. We must be aware of God’s presence with us, and we can utter at any time a word of prayer or praise. This can be verbal or in your mind.

You can whisper a prayer for help with your work. Praise for helping you get something done. Praise for a Blessing you just thought of, or prayer for a person that came to mind.

An attitude of prayer and praise keeps us tuned to the prompt deep inside that will guide us and direct us in every way, even to the place to find something we need or have missed placed.

If you have a steady prayer and study time with the Lord Jesus, I encourage you not to let up and I encourage you to expand your praying to include multitudes of things.

If your prayer life is just asking for help in emergency situations, may I suggest that you follow the example Jesus gave us of prayer surrounded with praise and the word.

I challenge you to pray the following scripture several times a day and then you will find yourself praying more and more and those prayers being more powerful.

Matthew 6:9–13 (KJV)

After this manner therefore pray ye:

Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. 10 Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven. 11 Give us this day our daily bread. 12 And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. 13 And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.

You may have heard, “Prayer Changes things” and it does but more importantly is that “Prayer changes us, and we change things”!

You want change in your life and in the USA and the world: Pray, in your private place and without ceasing.

2 Chronicles 7:14 (KJV)

1If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.

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Father, we lift our hearts to you and ask you to help us to pray in private and pray without ceasing! Thank you for knowing each of us and love us and hear our prayer and answer with the answer that is best for us. You see the entire picture of our lives. Thank you that you are God, and we are not, and we surrender all to you! In Jesus name we pray! Amen!

Love, MeMaw!